Let Me Fall
by the1koolkitty
Summary: Sequel to Cold Day in July: HPYGO Crossover. This year, Diana, Harry et all learn answers to some of their many questions...but these answers will only open the doors to even more questions. COMPLETE, SEQUEL POSTED
1. Author's Note

**_Let Me Fall:_  
**_The Harry Potter Books, Revised with Original Characters and the Yu-Gi-Oh! Cast_

_**Book Three: Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban**_

Disclaimer from Kitty:

NO, I DON'T OWN HARRY POTTER OR YU-GI-OH! Otherwise, this wouldn't be a FANFIC; this would be THE BOOKS or THE SERIES. So this is merely the sequel to _Cold Day in July_, my fanfiction version of the second HP book w/ Diana and the Yu-Gi-Oh boys and their girlfriends in it. It comes to you a little sooner than I expected, as I was planning to finish up _Egyptian Nights_ and _I'll Worship You Forever_ first, but I think I like having more than one fanfic to work on. (grins) This is third year, and my FAV BOOK! A lot will be revealed; Diana's dad…more about Artemis…and Aunt Gwen's past. But to find out these things, you MUST R&R!


	2. Chapter 1: Odd Visions and Old Friends

_**Chapter One:**_

_**Odd Visions and Old Friends** _

Diana Artemis Randall slept fretfully as the morning sun rose into the sky, dreaming strange things that, unknowns to her, was a type of warning of what was to happen her next year at school…

* * *

_Diana walked on the Hogwarts grounds, oddly alert and feeling like something was going to happen…_

_But as the sun bounced off the windows of Hagrid's hut and people laughed over near the lake, she involuntarily felt herself relax. Nothing seemed wrong at all. A handsome-looking sixth year boy was reading a book underneath a tree, and a little while away, Parvati Patil and Lavender Brown were gossiping animatedly. Fred and George were currently teasing the sleeping Giant Squid by tickling its tentacle with a large feather, with a couple of interested students watching them._

_Then, as her eyes surveyed the grounds, Diana thought of something that almost seemed to make her heart stop._

_Where were her friends?_

_Suddenly the sunlight vanished. The students were gone, the laughter stopped and the whole grounds were covered in an eerie silence that could provoke fear in the hearts of the strongest men, as if everything that could make a sound was slaughtered by the evening darkness._

_Diana felt a strike of fear. She needed to find her friends…something was wrong. They needed her. She just knew it._

_But Diana couldn't even take a step, for she froze at the sound of fast footsteps stomping through the grass…and toward her._

_She turned around, only to get hit hard in the chest and pushed backward._

"_AH!"_

_Diana felt herself hit the grass. She looked toward the source of the shove, to have her eyes meet the orbs of the large black dog on top of her._

_The dog's gray eyes seemed to bore into her very soul. Diana could see many things in those eyes…_

_Angst…_

_Anger…_

_And hunger.

* * *

_

"_Dare_! Dare, wake up!"

Diana's eyes shot open to see Ginny over her.

"C'mon, we're gonna be late!"

"Huh?" Diana moaned, feeling dazed, "For what?"

"Hello, earth to Dare," Ginny said impatiently, "If you don't get up soon, we'll leave for the pyramids _without_ you."

Diana blinked. Oh, yeah. She and the Weasleys were visiting Egypt with the money they had won from the Daily Prophet Grand Prize Galleon Draw, and, looking at the watch that had not found its way off her wrist yesterday, Diana realized that Ginny was right.

She jumped out of bed and raced to the bathroom in the hotel room she and Ginny shared. Fred and George's room was across the hall, Mr. and Mrs. Weasley's room was on the left, and Ron and Percy's room was on the right.

"Ginny?" she called through the door as she took off her clothes and got into the shower, "Could you do me a favor and see if there's any post? Aunt Gwen was supposed to write to me!"

"Sure!" Ginny yelled on the other side of the door.

Diana washed herself well, and got out of the shower before moving in front of the mirror and starting to comb her long red hair.

"Hey, Dare?" Ginny called through the door.

"Yeah, what is it?" asked Diana, pulling on a pair of frayed jean shorts.

"No letters from your aunt yet, but there's a letter here from Marik!"

Diana's ears pricked up. "Can you slide it under the door so I can read it?"

Ginny giggled from the other side of the door. "You and your hobbies while dressing…first you asked me to pass you your Charms homework, then that Muggle dueling magazine…"

"Doing more than one thing at a time gets more things done, Ginny dear," Diana joshed, tugging a red T-shirt with the words _"DANGER: Bad Temper"_ over her head, "And I don't want to idolize myself while dressing: I could make a mirror crack."

Ginny chuckled. "You're not _that_ ugly, Dare! You wonder why my mum is happy you hang around so many boys? She thinks it'll help find you a future husband."

"Um…_ew_!" Diana grimaced, "Tell your mum that she should worry about the boys that'll go to _your_ door in a few years instead of worrying about me!"

With another giggle, Ginny pushed Marik's letter under the door.

Diana picked it up, opened it and started to read:

* * *

**Konnichiwa, Dare-kun!**

**I just saw the Daily Prophet article about you and the Weasleys visiting Egypt! You should have told me sooner! I'm visiting Ishizu and Odeon this summer instead of hanging out with Yugi-kun et all in Domino. Kara-chan and the twins are here with me, along with her brother Roth; they both wanted to be reacquainted with their old home also. If you can put it in your plans, I can show you guys the inside of the tombs Kara-chan and I guarded. I'm sure Ron-kun and the Weasley twins would be interested; in one chamber, there are all these mutant skeletons of tomb robbers who tried to sneak in...too bad it didn't work on Bakura. I can meet you at the visitors' center for the pyramid tours and then I can take you there.**

**Sayonara, and try to come!**

**Marik

* * *

**

"Hey, Ginny!" Diana said as she opened the door, "Marik said we could visit him in the tombs if we wanted to!"

Ginny took the letter from Diana. When she finished reading it, she smiled. "That _would_ be something my brothers would like. I'm sure Dad wouldn't mind going…not like we'd give him a _chance_ to say no."

Diana smirked, knowing Ginny had a fair point considering how stubborn each of the Weasleys could be, and sat down at the table to start her reply.

* * *

**Dear Marik,**

**That sounds so totally wicked! You know I've been interested in Egypt ever since I met you guys. I'm sure Mr. Weasley will let us go. And Bakura isn't as bad he was, and besides, I probably would've stolen too if I was in his position. I'd love to meet Ishizu and Odeon, as well as Kara's brother Roth, since Mione has told me so much about them from her visit with you last summer. I'm also sure I'll find lots of interest in the hieroglyphs around the tombs; I've been studying how to read them with help from Ron's brother Bill and now I can read full sentences!**

**See you soon, and pass my love onto the Ishtar twins!**

**Dare**

**

* * *

**

She sealed the letter, and called for her owl. "_Aries_! Aries, come here, I've got a letter for you!"

Aries flew over, but not before ramming into a vase of flowers and knocking it off the table: luckily Diana caught it before it touched the ground.

"Clumsy, useless twit," she snapped at the owl, who hooted in a clueless manner, "Fly this over to Marik, and if you break anything at _his_ end, I will _personally_ sic a thestral on you."

Aries ignored Diana's rude comments, having heard impatient threats like this all the time from her, and flew out the window to deliver her letter.

"Alright, we better get going," said Mr. Weasley, smiling broadly as he, and the rest of the Weasleys came into Ginny and Diana's bedroom.

"Hey Dad," greeted Ginny, "Dare and Ron's friend Marik just wrote asking if we wanted to see his family's tomb today. It wouldn't be too far from where we're going: he can take us there from the visitors' center."

"_Awesome_!" Ron's eyes lit up in excitement, "C'mon, Dad, can't we go?"

"Hmm," Mr. Weasley murmured thoughtfully, "Molly, what do you think?"

Mrs. Weasley had a skeptical look on her face. "_Well_…"

"_Please_?" Diana begged.

"C'mon, Mum," said Fred, "There's no reason-"

"-Why we can't-" George interrupted.

"-Go, we'll-" Fred took control again.

"-Behave ourselves!" George finished.

Mrs. Weasley eyed the three begging pranksters closely, before sighing deeply. "Oh _alright_. But you _have_ to behave yourselves."

"_YEAH_!" Ron, Fred and George said together, giving each other high-fives.

_/It's about time/_ thought Diana, _/Finally I'll get to see the Egyptian desert/

* * *

_

"Dare-kun!"

Diana turned. "Marik!" 

The two friends exchanged a friendly hug.

"How've you been?" Kara asked. As usual, the Ishtar twins were sitting in a stroller next to her. Ariel and Kane were turning two in December, and were already starting to grow Marik's bleached blond hair so that it could frame their shining green eyes, which matched Kara's exactly.

"Aw, I'm fine," Diana said as the Weasleys came over.

"How are the twins?" asked Ron.

"You mean these little devils?" Marik smirked, picking up Ariel from the stroller and nuzzled the giggling toddler's nose, "They're still able to pull hair, so I'd say they're fine."

"Daddy!" Ariel grabbed a small lock of her father's hair in her tiny fist.

Kara rolled her eyes as she picked up Kane and rocked him a little to stop him from whimpering. "_Honestly_…"

"What?" Marik frowned, "I was just _teasing_."

"What!" Kane muttered grumpily.

"Teasing your own _children_?" Kara said coldly.

"Aw _c'mon_, Kara…" 

The Weasleys sweatdropped as Marik tried to apologize without so many words.

Ariel giggled. "Sorry Mama!"

"Apologia!" Kane shrieked, immediately losing his grumpy outlook.

"Ariel and Kane have a point, Marik," laughed Diana, "Part of being a husband is learning to apologize."

Marik sweatdropped. "Some help _you_ three are…"

Kara sighed, before turning to smile at the Weasleys. "Your family, Ron-kun? Or is it Dare-kun's? Kind of hard to tell."

Diana smirked. "If they really _were_ my family, I'd drive them all _crazy_…"

Ron pretended to look surprised. "You haven't yet?"

Diana poked him in the ribs rather painfully. "Oh, shut up!"

Marik shook his head in amusement. "It really is _obvious_ you two are related one way or another…"

Ginny crossed her arms, smiling slightly. "Sometimes I wonder how Ron and Dare became more like brother and sister than he and I did."

Diana glared playfully. "Only psychologically, my dear Ginny. All blood matters with this idiot reside with you, thank _Merlin_-"

Kara and Marik sweatdropped as Ron tried to retaliate.

"Absurd!" tittered Ariel.

Mr. Weasley blinked in surprise. "My, Ariel sure has a nice vocabulary."

Kara and Marik burst out laughing.

"Ariel loves to talk," Marik explained, smiling fondly down at the toddler in his arms, "She said her first word when I showed Kara her first Disney movie."

"'_Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious,'_" Kara grinned.

There was an amused silence, before George broke the ice again and asked, "C'mon guys, weren't we going to go visit the tombs?"

"Yeah," added Fred, grinning, "With the mutant skeletons-?"

Diana slapped a hand over his mouth, but it was too late.

"Mutant_ skeletons_?" Mrs. Weasley repeated, "_What_-?"

"It's nothing, Mrs. Weasley," Diana said quickly, "Just…uh…a joke between Marik and me…there aren't any, I _swear_."

Marik almost laughed and even Kara couldn't hold back a smile when Diana crossed her fingers behind her back.

"Alright…" Mrs. Weasley still looked suspicious, "Well, Marik dear," she spoke toward the Ishtar much more politely, "How are we getting there?"

"The best way possible," Marik said, "At least around here…"

* * *

"_CAMELS_?" Ron yelled impatiently, "Of all the transportation we could get, we had to get _CAMELS_?" 

"It really _is_ the best way, Ron-kun," Kara said ruefully from Marik's motorcycle, the twins sleeping together in her arms, "For a large group of people, I mean."

"What about Marik's motorcycle?" Fred grumbled from the camel he and George were sharing, "I'd love to enchant it to make us fly there…"

"You're not old enough," snapped Mrs. Weasley, "And you know it."

"Sorry," Marik said guiltily, "It was the quickest way for me and Kara-chan to get there on time, but it can't fit us all on the way back."

"It's no big deal, Marik," said Diana kindly, stroking her camel's neck.

"Easy for _you_ to say, Dare," George snapped at Diana from behind Fred, "The camel behind you isn't trying to spit at you."


	3. Chapter 2: Roth's Forewarning

**Kitty: (grinning broadly as she types away on her computer) I _soooo _am digging this chapter. **

**Yugi: (pokes his head into Kitty's room) Why, Neko-chan?**

**Kitty: You can read it over my shoulder if you want. Something people have been wondering about will be revealed.**

**Atem: (pokes his head in) Which mystery are you solving in this chapter, Kitty? **

**Kitty: Remember the whole scandal about Bakura's and Dare's relationship, and the person in Bakura's love-life whom people kept guessing the identity of?**

**Lina: (pokes her head in) How could we forget? Bakura _IS _my bishie, ya know.**

**Kitty: Well, in this chapter, the person's identity is revealed. **

**Lina: Should I be _worried_, Hikari?**

**Kitty: I think it makes things intriguing, so no, I don't think you should.**

**Lina: (whew)**

**Atem: R&R!**

**

* * *

**_**Chapter Two:**_

_**Roth's Forewarning**_

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity of camel riding, noon struck. The sun glinted right above them, and it was almost an orange-red color in the still cloud-free sky.

"We're here!" Kara said, "The Tomb Keeper's Haven!"

Marik stopped at a strangely particular spot, before bringing his foot around so he could shove aside some sand to reveal a metal trapdoor. Diana and the Weasley family jumped off of the backs of their camels and tied their reins to some wooden posts in the sand.

"Is that it, Kara?" asked Mrs. Weasley.

"Yep," answered Kara.

Marik took the sleeping Kane from his wife, before he used his free hand to open the trapdoor in the sand to reveal a long stone staircase.

The Weasleys and Diana followed Marik and Kara down the stairs, guided only by the light of the torches and amazed at the hieroglyphs and pictures almost covering the walls.

"_Wow_," Ginny whispered.

"This is…_whoa_…" Even Percy, the Weasley well known at being better than most Hogwarts professors at giving people lengthy speeches, was speechless.

"You think _that's_ cool?" Marik asked, sounding quite bored, "That's just the history of our family guarding the tombs."

"It mentions every name and every bit of history in Marik's Tomb Keeping family ever since they were first appointed 5000 years ago," Kara explained, "In the time of Pharaohs."

"But it isn't interesting in the least," snorted Marik in disgust, "Considering that all of the Tomb Keeper families have been forbidden to go up to the surface world until only recently…no change of scenery, so no change of each of the Tomb Keepers' upbringing. That doesn't mean it's short, though. If you want some idea of how long my family's history has been recorded, I've studied it none-stop since the day I learned how to read my name, and I'm _still_ not done with it."

"_Jeez_," Ron said, "Where are you mentioned, Marik?"

"Well, if Odeon's here," Marik said, pointing to a section of the wall where his eldest brother was, "And Ishizu's here…here's me."

Diana looked at the hieroglyphs where Marik had pointed and then tried to read some of it.

"'_Marik…the third…child…was…born into…privilege-'_"

"'_On all levels,'_" Marik finished curtly, "They _always_ say that…but it isn't always true…"

Diana saw Kara frown as if remembering an experience that Marik's statement was directed toward, but the green-eyed Egyptian said nothing as she followed Marik the rest of the way down.

"We're back!" Marik called.

A young woman with long black hair, a sun-kissed complexion and bright blue eyes came out of one of the rooms.

"Hello, Marik-chan," she said, smiling, "Hello, Kara-chan."

A man then joined them in the hallway. He looked about the same age as the woman was, and had sleek, brown-black hair that framed his face nicely and made his jade-green eyes stand out well on his tanned skin. Around his neck was a golden Ankh.

"Hey Roth-san!" Kara greeted.

"Feeling alright, little sister?" Roth asked as he gave her a hug and smiled down at the waking-up Ariel.

"I'm fine, brother," Kara replied.

Roth kissed his sister's forehead, before noticing the others. "Marik's friends, I presume?"

"Hai," Kara said, "Ne-san, these are Marik-chan's school friends Ron and Dare, as well as Ron's siblings, Fred, George…oh no, I mean George, Fred…gomennasai…Ginny and Percy, and Ron's parents, Molly and Arthur Weasley. Guys, this is my older brother, Roth."

"And my older sister, Ishizu," Marik added.

Roth looked at Diana with an oddly closed look. "You're the Heir of Artemis, aren't you?"

Diana nodded, feeling awkward under his pensive, non-blinking gaze.

A tall, dark-skinned man with a tattoo covering the right side of his face and golden brown eyes stepped out of another room and into the candlelight; Diana was pleased to have a type of distraction so she didn't have to stare down Kara's elder brother.

"Odeon!" cried Ariel.

Kara and Marik put each of the twins down on the floor so they could run clumsily over to the man and give him a hug.

"Hello, Ariel-chan," Odeon replied in a modestly kind voice, "Hello, Kane-chan. Did you two have fun?"

"Yessir!" Ariel nodded.

"Fun!" agreed Kane, "Friendsilly…muskela."

And although he likely couldn't have understood Ariel and Kane, Odeon didn't degrade the infants' speech in any way. He merely smiled and told them,

"That sounds exciting. Maybe you should tell me more about it in a little bit. For the moment, though, I believe we have guests."

Odeon looked up and inclined his head respectfully in Marik's direction. "Nice to see you're home, Marik-sama. Who are your guests?"

Diana looked at Marik questioningly.

_/Why is Odeon calling him "Marik-sama" if Marik and he are brothers? Isn't "sama" for people above you in status/_

Marik tried to ignore her look, looking uncomfortable.

"Um…hi, Odeon," he replied, "These are my friends, Ron and Dare, and Ron-kun's family."

"It's an honor to finally make your acquaintances," Odeon inclined his head to the group, "Marik-sama has told me much about all of you."

"Likewise, I'm sure," Mr. Weasley said humanely, "Ron and Diana have spoken about nothing all summer except when they can see their friends again at school…"

While the conversation continued, Roth looked at Diana again with that odd expression, and she tried not to look away.

"Diana, I believe Kara-chan told me you were interested in hieroglyphs?"

Diana nodded. "Yeah…I just started reading them."

Roth smiled, but it didn't warm up his face in the least bit. "Let me show you something. I think you'll find it interesting."

Diana looked at Kara hesitantly. The mother-turned-singer nodded encouragingly, so the red-haired witch-in-training awkwardly followed Roth into a corridor, leaving Marik and the others behind.

Roth went down the corridor, until finally turning to enter a room, and Diana followed him.

All over the walls were hieroglyphs and pictures, just like the hallway leading down into the Tomb Keeper's Haven, and in the corner, Diana saw a picture that immediately grabbed her attention.

She ran over to the corner as to see it better.

The picture was of two figures: a Egyptian-looking woman all dressed in white and wearing a gold tiara and a young man that Diana had no problem in recognizing, with white hair, a double "X" scar on his tanned left cheek and red robes dressing his strong yet nimble figure.

"Bakura…" Diana whispered, touching her friend's carved face.

The female Gryffindor then looked harder at the woman, and realized that she also looked familiar…familiar as the face that she had looked at in the mirror while getting ready that morning. The only difference between the two young women was that the drawn Egyptian had long raven hair instead of the Randall's fiery red.

"Who's that woman with him?" Diana asked at last.

Roth came up behind her; Diana tried not to shiver as he looked over her head broodingly at the hieroglyphs.

"Her name was Artemis Giselle. She was a thief."

Diana zoomed around to stare at him.

"_Artemis_?"

Roth nodded, his green eyes expressionless. "Before she became _'Dark Artemis,'_ Artemis Giselle was just a simple thief who met the King of Thieves one day and they fell in love."

Diana went white with shock: her eyes widened. "Artemis…and _Bakura_? Th-that can't be!"

Roth looked at the hieroglyphs. "It's true, Diana. Unfortunately, it didn't last. After three years, they realized they were destined for different paths."

"What do you mean?" Diana asked. The blood was pounding in her ears so hard it was a wonder she could hear herself speak.

"A thief and a future queen do not go well together, Diana," Roth said seriously, "And thought of weakness from followers could always be taken advantage of-"

"Artemis was no _queen_," spat Diana suddenly, crossing her arms, "She could _never_ be a queen. She could never be anything but the murderer that she is."

"Perhaps," Roth said quietly, "But no matter how much a Yami may wish to deny it, a Hikari always affects them in one way or another. Sometimes it's obvious, like your friend Bakura and his Hikari…I can assure you that the thief was not nearly so kind in the Egyptian past. In other cases, like yours, for example, the change between the Yami's past self and present one is so subtle…so undetectable…that someone could only see it if she were the mysterious Yami herself."

Diana looked at Roth carefully for a moment. At last she whispered, "How…how do you know all this?"

Roth smiled, and this time it made a difference. "Let's just say I have a key that unlocks the answers to many questions."

Diana was about to ask what he meant, but Roth's friendly smile faded quickly as he spoke again.

"I know about your struggles with Artemis, Diana. I can see everything you've experienced just by looking into your eyes. They are filled with pain and evil philosophy, no matter how much bravery and stubbornness has tried to mask it. Be careful: evil once consumed Marik, and he even now has trouble fighting back against those feelings and memories. Do not let yourself be consumed by the very thing that brought Artemis and almost Marik to their doom, no matter who you meet or what you hear."

And without another word, Roth turned on his heel and left Diana alone in the Egyptian-sketched room to ponder his words.

* * *

**Yugi: (gawks) _ARTEMIS_?**

**Kitty: (nods grimly) Yeppers. It's Artemis.**

**Lina: But...why would Bakura go with a part vampire with blue skin and white hair?**

**Everyone Else: (anime fall)**

**Kitty: YOU IDIOT! Artemis didn't _always _look like that: just think about the hieroglyphs! She had black hair and normal skin in the past.**

**Lina: So why'd she change?**

**Kitty: That will be revealed later. Now...for the reviews. To keep track with the new rules... (tries not to look annoyed) I will not be able to write my responses in script format...so that means I alone will be able to answer the reviews.**

**Yugi: (crosses his arms) _Soooooo _not fair.**

**Kitty: Well, we might be moving over to Novice Writers pretty soon...you never know. In either case, here are the reviewers...**

_SGCred (Claire) Ha, poor George: he just doesn't have Dare's flair with animals. And I adore Ariel and Kane, their dialogue is fun to write. I just thought I'd take a page out of Lemony Snicket's book by having the infants say single words to mean different things (a lot like his character Sunny Baudelaire), and I like using it. Marik being a father is a daunting task...I'm pretty sure those two will be able to cause a lot of mischief, especially since they have magic blood...whoops, said too much. Forget I said that. Anyway, the dog will definitely appear again, in Dare's dreams and in reality. Hope you liked the stuff with Artemis and Dare in this chappie: shall be more as the story progresses._

_Egyptiankitty (Engie) You know, I have thought about how I haven't emailed you in forever and I feel awful. Being a high school Sophmore is soooooo not fun: I'm already having problems with grades... took me at least two months before that happened as a Freshman...oh well, enough of my problems. I do miss you and I promise you that I'll write to you soon, as soon as my mother's need for my time has ceased. Hearing from you always does make me feel loved, hun. (hugs you) Glad you liked Marik and Sirius-kun...old Snuffles will have an even larger part in my fanfic than he did in the book and definitely more than in the movie, as Cuaron is an asshole. Dare's dream is a hint toward the story, so I will expect that my story will end up being, as you called it, "creepy." I hope so anyway: after all, Halloween is coming up soon! Creepiness is required._

**Kitty Speaking of Halloween, I've chosen what I'm going to be!**

**Atem: A witch? You're always a witch. **

**Kitty: (glares) I'm going to be MORE than an ordinary witch...I'm going to be Elphaba, the Wicked Witch of the West! (shows off the shiny pair of ruby slippers on her feet)**

**Yugi: Shall I be your Fiyero, then?**

**Kitty: As long as you're mine, dear.**

**Yugi and Kitty: (sing _"As Long As You're Mine"_ from Wicked)**

**Lina: (sweatdrop) Uhh...R&R, peoples! ****  
**


	4. Chapter 3: Meet Up in Diagon Alley

**Kitty: (reading a script on her bed) _Over here! ...sorry._  
**

**Yugi: (crawls out from under the bed) Kitten, what are you doing? **

**Kitty: Practicing my lines for the Hobbit. Did you finish locking Tonks down there?**

**Yugi: Yeah...she kept screaming something about how she was a creative character... (scowls) I think she's _already _losing her mind.**

**Kitty: (clicks her tongue reproachfully) Well, at least she's out of Remus's hair.**

**Noa: (comes into the room) Hey, Kitty. Finish the chapter?**

**Kitty: I sure did. This will be the last happy chapter for a while.**

**Bakura: (sitting on top of Kitty's chandelier) And what is THAT supposed to mean?**

**Kitty: BAKURA! What the hell are you doing up there?**

**Bakura: Just chilling. Lina kicked me out of her room thanks to you squealing about the Artemis thing.**

**Kitty: That's not your fault: Lina should know that. Don't worry, I'll talk to her. And to your first question...well, I told you last fic this story would be chockful of mystery and teen angst, I think that's plenty.**

**Noa: (sigh) R&R, people!**

**

* * *

**_**Chapter Three:**_

_**Meet-Up At Diagon Alley**_

A few days later, Diana, Marik and the Weasleys flew back to England, while Kara, Roth and the Ishtar twins flew for Domino.

Diana hadn't spoken that much to anyone in that time and her silence was very unnerving considering how talkative she usually was: however, being concerned for her privacy and feelings, no one asked anything of her, and Diana was glad. She didn't want to explain what Roth had told her about Artemis and Bakura's relationship.

The Tomb Robber had been Diana's best friend almost as soon as the two first met two years ago, and the young Randall couldn't imagine that Bakura could've felt any feelings for the spirit that had hurt her ever since she was born. How could one of the people she cared about the most love the half-vampire who she hated with everything in her?

_/Did Bakura become my friend so quickly because I reminded him of Artemis/_ she asked herself, _/Even I can admit that we look a lot alike…like twins, almost. Does Bakura really care about me, or is he only interested in Artemis's memory?.../_

Thinking things like this made Diana's heart ache, not only because she hated thinking of Bakura and Artemis together, but because she couldn't answer her own questions: that fact was enough to terrify her, for there was no one who could answer her but Bakura himself, and she could never bring herself to ask him. If she did, then she would have to accept that her friend loved Artemis, and that was something she didn't think she could cope with.

Luckily when Diana went into Diagon Alley on the last day before school started so Ron could get a check-up on his rat, Scabbers, her pondering of Bakura and Artemis was driven from her mind, due to her, Ron and Marik meeting up with the rest of their friends and Seto's brother, Mokuba, in front of Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlor.

"_Finally _we found you!" Hermione said.

"We've been _wondering_ where you guys have been," concurred Ryou, grinning slightly, "We've been looking all over, in stores and stuff…"

"We already got our stuff last week," explained Diana, "We're only here so Scabbers can get a check-up, he's been looking awful ever since we came back from Egypt…"

"Did you _really_ blow up your aunt, Harry?" asked Ron eagerly as soon as Diana was done.

Diana looked at Ron in surprise. "_What_? What d'you mean, Ron?"

"Don't you remember when Dad came home yesterday and told us?" Ron turned to Diana.

"Uh…no," Diana admitted, "I don't really remember that."

"Well, you have been a little vague lately," Marik said with a slight smile, before looking at the Boy Who Lived and asking as keenly as Ron, "So Harry-kun, _did_ you blow up your aunt?"

Harry rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment. "Well…_yeah_…but I didn't _mean_ to, I just sorta…lost control."

Diana couldn't help but snigger at the thought of Harry's aunt blown up like a balloon.

"You should've asked her if she wanted some Gas-X or something," the redhead joked.

Harry, Marik and Ryou laughed, but Hermione looked at Diana disdainfully.

"It's _not_ funny, Dare," the bookworm reproached, "_Honestly_, I'm surprised Harry wasn't expelled."

"Forget _expelled_, I was afraid I was going to get _arrested_," stated Harry, "I kind of wondered why I was let off so easily…I mean, I already got a warning from last year at Yugi's house with the whole Dobby incident…"

"It's likely because you're the Boy Who Lived," Yugi crossed his arms, "There are too many people in the world who treat you special because you're famous. You have no _idea_ how many people I have heard of trying to replicate my deck and change themselves to look exactly like me."

"I can relate," Seto agreed, "But I think the _'special'_ treatment Mokuba and I get is worse than most people."

Mokuba nodded. "Yep: we've had to beat a greedy executive board in a computer game, negotiate with a second, virtual heir of the Kaiba family and put to rest a guy who thought his life was destroyed by our company and tried to feed us to an ancient monster."

"Mokuba, I forgot to ask you," Diana remembered suddenly, "Why are you here in England? Shouldn't you be back in Domino with Melisanne and the others?"

Mokuba's blue eyes lit up as if Diana had asked a question he had been waiting anxiously for someone to ask.

"Here's why," said the younger Kaiba, and he pulled a folded scrap of paper out of his jacket pocket and started to read the first line out loud very slowly and dramatically, "_'Dear Mr. Kaiba…we are pleased to inform you…that you have been accepted…to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry!'_"

"Congrats, Mokuba!" Marik grinned, "Now you can hang out with us at school."

"I hope I end up in Ravenclaw," said Mokuba earnestly, "I mean, the other houses sound cool, but I'd like to be around Seto-sama."

Diana shrugged. "Well, I'm sure you'll like it, Mokuba. Just don't be surprised if the magic overwhelms you when you get there…the first time is always the most exhilarating."

"I'm looking _forward_ to it!" contended Mokuba, "When I'm a wizard too, Seto and I can work on making Kaiba Land with magic."

"That would definitely make the production move faster," said Yugi, "And you wouldn't have to worry about any more _glitches_, eh Kaiba-kun?"

Seto snorted. "Yeah…all those pink-haired hackers _do_ start to get on my nerves after a while…"

The British students clearly didn't know what Seto was talking about, and instead of asking and getting a long-winded explanation, they thought it'd be best to change the subject.

"So Mokuba, did you get all of your supplies?" asked Hermione.

Mokuba nodded. "Check out my wand."

He whipped a long, silver-black wand out of the same jacket pocket the letter had been in and waved it a little.

"'_Pliable mahogany and dragon heartstring…quite whippy,'_" he recited Ollivander.

Ron smiled. "I had to get a new wand too…couldn't likely go back to school with my broken wand from last year…Mum was able to get me a new wand this time, though, instead of a hand-me-down, because of the Galleon Draw. _'Willow and unicorn hair, fourteen inches. Excellent at Charm work.'_ And we could get some new books, too. Remember those _Monster_ books, Dare?"

Diana nodded. "Yeah. The book keeper looked hysterical when we told him we needed three…poor guy."

"Well, the book keeper seemed worse when I needed all of my books," Hermione shrugged, "He was worried I wouldn't be able to carry them all."

"I was thinking the same thing myself, Mione-kun," Yugi eyed the bushy brown-haired girl's three bulging bags in the chair next to her, "At first I thought you must be lifting weights to be able to carry all those books…what are they for, anyway?"

"My new subjects," Hermione replied, "And obviously, I'm taking a lot more than you, aren't I? Arithmancy, Care of Magical Creatures, the Study of Ancient Runes, Divination, Muggle Studies-"

"What are you taking Muggle Studies for?" interrupted Diana with a raised eyebrow, "You _are_ Muggle born…what would be the purpose of learning something you already know everything about?"

"But it'd be _fascinating_ to study them in the _Wizarding_ point of view," Hermione argued earnestly.

Harry looked amused. "Are you planning to eat or sleep at all this year, Mione?"

* * *

Later, Hermione, Ron, Seto and Mokuba headed into the Magical Menagerie, while Yugi, Ryou, Diana and Marik stayed outside on a bench to "test" the new Duel Monster deck that Harry had constructed over the summer. Hermione was going into the Menagerie with 10 Galleons her parents had given her for an early birthday present, and she had decided she wanted an owl. Ron was going in as to get something to help Scabbers. Mokuba, as a first year, still needed a pet, and he thought browsing around in the Menagerie would help him choose. 

Diana was just reminding Harry about the restriction of three cards of the same kind in each dueling deck when a chorus of sound came from inside the Menagerie. There was a shout of pain, a cat spitting furiously, a cry of "NO, CROOKSHANKS, NO!" and a few objects crashing to the floor, before Ron came running out of the store and grabbing the escaping Scabbers off of the ground and placing the frightened-looking rat into his pocket.

"What happened?" asked Ryou, looking concerned.

"This _thing_ came out of nowhere and tried to attack Scabbers!" Ron explained, looking both staggered and irritated.

"Well, generally speaking, the only _thing_ that goes after rats that hisses is a cat," Diana replied, clearly not liking the description of an animal as a _"thing."_

Ron snorted. "Feh. Looked more like a small, ugly _tiger_ to me…"

Just then, Hermione, Mokuba and Seto came out of the Magical Menagerie. Mokuba was holding a cage with a brand new Puffskein, a furry yellow creature about the size of a small dog that would eat about anything. Hermione wasn't carrying an owl like she had first wanted; instead, she had her arms clamped around a large, ginger cat that looked more like a small, ugly tiger.

"You _brought_ that monster?" Ron asked in disbelief.

"He's _gorgeous_, isn't he?" said Hermione, positively glowing.

Even Diana couldn't help but sweatdrop at Hermione's description of the cat: its fur was thick and fluffy, yes, but it was obviously a bit bowlegged and its face looked grumpy and oddly squashed, as though it had been slammed face-first by a moving truck. Still, the cat didn't look ferocious, so Diana spent no time at all in going over to the cat and letting it sniff her hand. For a moment, the cat seemed to judge her: then it licked her hand with its rough tongue and purred.

"He seems sweet to me," Diana turned to Ron, crossing her arms.

"_Sweet_?" Ron repeated, sounding scandalized, "That cat nearly _scalped_ me!"

"He didn't _mean_ to, did you, Crookshanks?" Hermione crooned.

"What about _Scabbers_?" demanded Ron, "He needs rest and relaxation! How can he get it when that _thing_ is around?"

"Speaking of Scabbers, you left your rat tonic on the counter," said Hermione, slapping the red bottle into Ron's hand, "And don't _worry_ about it: Crookshanks will be the Girls' Dorm, and Scabbers in the Boys', so what's the problem? Poor Crookshanks…that witch said he'd been in there for _ages_: no one wanted him."

"Gee, I wonder why," Ron muttered sarcastically.

Diana poked him in the side with her elbow.

"_Ow_! Hey, what was _that_ for?"

Diana didn't answer Ron: instead she smiled at Hermione and asked, "Can I hold Crookshanks for a minute?"

"Sure," Hermione replied, looking happy at least one other person liked Crookshanks as much as she did.

Diana took Crookshanks into her arms, and the cat peered up at her carefully with its bright yellow eyes.

"Hi there, you," Diana greeted Crookshanks with a gentle teasing smile on her face, "I'd suggest you'd just give Ron a little time: he's a little mad about Scabbers is all."

"He's just stubborn," added Hermione, "But he'll see he's wrong eventually, don't you worry, Crookshanks…"

The boys of the group sweatdropped as Hermione and Diana both started talking to the purring tiger cat.

"Well, now I know how to tell if a girl should be in a mental facility," said Harry, "Just see her talking to a cat."

* * *

**Kitty: End chapter.**

**Yugi: (growls) SEE HER TALKING TO A CAT! Harry, I'm going to kill you.**

**Harry: (eyes go wide) Ahhh! (runs behind Ginny)**

**Kitty: Yugi-chan, it's not an insult. Anyone who can talk to me must be a little insane, as all my friends are just as insane as I am.**

**Yugi: (crosses his arms) Humph. **

**Kitty: Now...to the reviews!**

**_Egyptiankitty (Engie)_**_ Glad you liked the twist. As to your assessment, I might remind you about something Dare has once said, "One could deny that destiny can be changed." Not saying that's going to be true, though: you'll just have to see. And you no Baka Neko, dearie: I'm the only baka who's called Neko...at least, I feel like a baka sometimes, but doesn't everyone? GO NIGHTMARE BEFORE XMAS! One of my friends is going as Jack Skellington. (grins broadly)  
_

**_SGCred (Claire) _**_Oddly enough, Lina seems to be going after Bakura instead of Artemis or me, which would be a lot more sensible. (shrugs) Not that Lina could win a fight against Artemis or me: she's a half-vampire and I'm an authoress, so the both of us can be quite vicious. But I think Lina will get over it: she usually gets over any fanfic ideas that displease her eventually. Well, Melisanne won't be appearing that much, sadly: Melisanne will have a larger part around Goblet of Fire time. I can't wait to read more of Shy But Sweet Wanting...oh, and Yugi tells you that he has put up a perimeter around our house to guard me from Drake, complete with rabid dogs and red lasers. (winks) Something tells me Drake will greatly regret trying to come after me again...  
_

**_ANAYAS-CREATER _**_Wicked is the most awesomeness thing in the world! (grins) I've been singing it for a while now. I'm so sorry about Demon Witch... (growls at the reminder of Fanfiction's stricter rules) Can't wait for your next update, sweetie: I'm always reading.  
_

_**Zelda-Ally **I'm glad you and Ally like it so much! Always great to hear approval. And awesome on you for getting Artemis...maybe I shouldn't have given so many hints, then it'd be more of a surprise... In either case, I agree with you on Ariel and Kane: yeah, I'm the authoress, so of course I must like them at least a little, but I find them very fun to write stuff for. Yeah, poor Dare...even more poorness for her will start next chapter. Sucks much that you couldn't get your Inuyasha. (pouts) Well, I'm sure you'll be able to get it soon: hey, at least you know where you can find it now!  
_

_**Rainbow Guardian Angel **Yay! You two like it! Your opinions definitely matter to me, dears. Again, Lina's more annoyed with Bakura, but yeah, I bet she's ticked with Artemis too...she just doesn't show it as much. (rolls her eyes) Yeah, Roth has the Key: since Ishizu didn't own the Necklace anymore, it couldn't be her, and Roth has been studying the Tombs for a long time too, so why not? (grins at the mention of Elphaba) Well, my friend Emily calls me Torelpie (Tory + Elphie) because I got Elphaba on a quiz saying which Wicked char you're most like and because Elphaba's my uber fav char, so I had her on the mind. I still haven't found green make-up, but I'll be sure to look hard for it. (shrugs) Anyway, I love your Halloween ideas! Galadriel would be soooooo awesome! And Atem is more than flattered, Misumi: maybe it's just a coincidence, but he was thinking of dressing as Pharaoh for Halloween. (smirks)_

_**Kyte** Ahhhh, hello, hun! Good to hear from you. Well, it seems you're one of the first people who was really surprised... (mutters) I really shouldn't have given so many clues... (ahem) Anyway... (grins) I couldn't resist: I just had to have Ariel say it. Whoot! Go you on that costume. Wish I could see it._

_**Setoglomper** Oh, you've been waiting? Well, I was planning to wait longer, but I just couldn't force myself to wait any longer. Seto-san says "hi" too...a little grudgingly considering how many fans he has, but "hi" is a start, you know! Hope you like this chapter as much as you did the first two. (gives you a hug, and then lets you run around the room in hyperness)_

**Kitty: Hopefully I'll be able to start on the next chapter sometime this week: of course, I do still need to work on the next action-filled chapters of Egyptian Nights, play rehearals and memorizing lines for the Hobbit will take up my Mondays and Wednesdays until the middle of November, and I still have Forensics Theatre and Drama Club too, so forgive me if the next chapter doesn't come quite as quickly as the last ones.**

**Yugi: What part are you doing for the Hobbit again, Kitten?**

**Kitty: Bombur, the overweight dwarf.**

**Yugi: WHAT? They call YOU overweight? HOW DARE THOSE BASTARDS-**

**Kitty: Chiiiiiill, Yugi-chan. I think it'd be kinda fun: after all, I'm pretty good at comedy roles, and I could do an awful lot of comedy with a fat person.**

**Yugi: (huffs) Still. You're not fat.**

**Kitty: I will be if we ever decide to have a kid.**

**Yugi: (blushes) Kitten! We're too young.**

**Kitty: Now, anyway. But maybe later.**

**Yugi: (blushes redder) Lets just stick to the kid we might have in your or Claire's fanfics for now, please.**

**Kitty: I agree. (looks at the audience) R&R, folks!  
**


	5. Chapter 4: A Demented Train Ride

**Kitty: (grinning broadly as she comes into her room) Sorry I'm late, guys...had to get to Drama Club.**

**Yugi: (in front of the computer) No problem, Kitten: I was just reading your latest chapter.**

**Kitty: What do you think?**

**Yugi: Really dark...but in a good way.**

**Lina: (comes in) _Finally _you start writing something dark, Kitty!**

**Kitty: Speaking of writing, Lina, you mind explaining why you've banned Bakura from your room? It's not _his _****fault about the Artemis thing, you know.**

**Lina: (glares) Shut up, Hikari.**

**Kitty: I just think you should have a reason for being mad at him before making him retreat onto my chandelier: after all, I don't think sleeping on gold and wax is very comfy.  
**

**Lina: (huffs and walks away)**

**Bakura: (mopes from the top of the chandelier) Maybe I should go move in with Dare...**

**Yugi: (sweatdrop) R&R, folks!**

**

* * *

**_**Chapter Four:**_

_**A Demented Train Ride**_

The next morning, the Weasleys and the Japanese boys rushed to board the Hogwarts Express on time, ready to start a new year at Hogwarts School.

Mrs. Weasley's kind face has just fallen out of sight from Diana's line of vision through the train window: she turned to her large group of friends and said, "We'll be lucky to find an empty compartment that we can all squish into at this rate."

"If the Pharaoh had just finished idolizing his ugly mug in the mirror, we could have been here a lot sooner," grumbled Bakura.

"Well, excuse _me_ if I like to look okay before I head out the door," Atem growled back, "Not _everyone_ can ignore rules of sanitation like _you_ can-"

Bakura was about to jump onto Atem and beat him up, but Seth had stepped between them and gripped their shoulders tightly.

"Knock it off," he chastised, still smiling, "I thought you guys could stop picking fights with one another for just _two_ seconds…really, with you two, I end up feeling more like a _nanny_ than a High Priest."

Everyone but the Tomb Robber and the Pharaoh had a good laugh at that: the two Yamis in question scowled and crossed their arms indignantly.

"C'mon, let's just find a compartment," Hermione suggested.

So the nine students headed down the train before finally finding an empty-looking compartment at the very end.

Mokuba opened the door and peeked his head in. "There's an adult in here."

"An _adult_?" asked Marik with a frown, "Strange…teachers don't usually come on the train. Are you sure he's not a student?"

"He looks too _old_ to be a student," Mokuba replied in a quiet voice, "And I don't think a student would be so bored that he had to sleep on the train."

He opened the door all the way so that the others could step inside, shove their bags into the carrying shelves above the seats and sit down without waking up the strange man sleeping in the right corner of the compartment that Mokuba had been talking about.

The about 35-year-old stranger had tousled light brown hair with flecks of gray that was long enough to curl behind his ears. He was wearing a very worn, shabby set of wizard robes with a lot of patches and different-colored seams. His pale, pale face gave the impression that he was quite ill: Diana frankly couldn't blame him for wanting some sleep.

"Anyone know who he is?" hissed Ron.

"Professor R.J. Lupin," Hermione answered promptly.

Ron goggled at her. "You _do_ know everything, don't you?"

Hermione blushed a little. "_No_…it's on his suitcase."

Diana looked above the professor's head, and indeed, there was a tattered suitcase on the shelf labeled with the name **_"Professor R. J. Lupin."_**

"He must be the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher," said Seth.

"He might be replacing one of the old third year teachers," Bakura pointed out, "I can't imagine a teacher like _that_ teaching Defense…he looks like one well-placed jinx would finish him off."

"Bakura, don't say things like that!" Hermione looked horrified.

"Appearances _can_ be deceiving, Tomb Robber," concurred Atem, "You should know that by now…just look at my Hikari. Some people are still under the impression that he's an _innocent_ young man."

Bakura raised an eyebrow curiously. "Under the _impression_? Whoa, what has little Yugi done that surprised you?"

Atem sweatdropped. "I walked in on Yugi and Kitty…well, Yugi made me _swear_ never to tell a soul about what they were doing, but you get it…"

Diana then noticed that she had not been the only one who hadn't been talking at all through this conversation: Harry had been looking out the window pensively and had not spoken since they had first boarded the train.

"You okay, Harry?" the redhead asked in concern.

Harry looked at her in surprise: he must have forgotten he wasn't alone. "Yeah, I…I was just thinking about something Mr. Weasley said to me."

"What did he say?" asked Mokuba.

"It was right before we got on the train," explicated Harry, "He told me that I shouldn't go _looking_ for Black…no matter what I hear or learn about him."

Diana's eyes widened. _/Wait a sec…that sounds like what Roth told me/_

"_Sirius_ Black?" inquired Atem, an eyebrow raised, "Yugi saw a section about him on the Japanese news earlier this week…but they didn't say that much about _why_ he was arrested: they just said he was a murderer." 

"He's not _just_ a murderer," Ron shook his head, "He's a Wizarding criminal! No Wizarding criminal is _just_ anything."

"But why would a Wizarding criminal be on the Muggle news?" asked Seth.

"It's because of his crime," explained Hermione, "According to what I read in the Daily Prophet, Black killed thirteen Muggles with one curse…he was a very important supporter of You-Know-Who."

"Well, why didn't you say that _before_?" growled Bakura, "_Now_ we know why everyone's making such a big fuss!"

"But they'll catch Black soon, won't they?" said Marik, "After all, if both the Wizarding _and_ Muggle communities are looking for him…"

"It won't matter," Diana sighed, "This guy broke out of _Azkaban_…no wizard has _ever_ broken out of Azkaban before…and no one has a clue how Black did it."

No one said anything after that. The food trolley came by and the friends each bought snacks, but no one spoke until the train started to slow down.

"Great, we're there," Ron grinned and looked about to get up from his seat, "I want to get to the feast…"

"We _can't_ be there yet," muttered Hermione, looking at her watch.

"So why are we stopping?" asked Mokuba.

The train slowed down to a stop. Marik, who was closest to the door, went to open it up, but was thrown backward into the compartment by a jolt of the train before he could. Some of the students' luggage fell off of the shelves with a THUD, and without warning, the lights shot off, throwing them into complete darkness. Mokuba cried out in surprise.

"Whose lap did I land in?" asked Marik's voice.

"Mine," answered Diana, who had felt someone fall on top of her amidst the confusion.

"Sorry," replied Marik.

"Just get off her already and try and open a _door_ or something, Tomb Keeper!" snapped Bakura, "It's too dark to see anything!"

"Our train must have broken down," Atem stated, "They'll probably get some help for us soon, magic works fast, you know…"

There was a rustle in the direction of the window.

"I think I see someone coming aboard," Seth whispered, "Hooded figures."

"It must be some people to fix the train," said Mokuba, sounding nervous.

"_Ow_! Someone stepped on my _foot_!" squealed Hermione.

"I think that was me…sorry," muttered Ron.

"Oh, this is _ridiculous_!" growled Diana, feeling around in her pocket, "We can't see a _thing_…we need a light in here, let me just find my wand…"

"Allow me," said a hoarse, unfamiliar voice from the right corner. Diana realized that Professor Lupin must have woken up.

She heard him rustling around; then a shivering light filled the compartment. The professor seemed to be holding a handful of flames, which illuminated his tired, gray face: his oddly golden-like eyes, however, were shining with alertness and caution.

"Don't make a sound," he told them.

He slowly got to his feet with his handful of flames held out in front of him so he could see…

But the door opened before Lupin could open it.

Standing in the doorway was a cloaked figure illuminated by the flickering flames in Lupin's hand. Its face was completely hidden by its hood, and reaching out from the sleeve of its robe was a slimy-looking gray hand, as if the hand were that of a dead person that had already started decaying.

But the hand slowly retreated back from them: it turned in Diana's direction, before it inhaled a deep, rattling breath…a breath that seemed to suck out every ounce of happiness that could possibly be in the students' hearts.

Diana felt an intense cold consume her. She was having trouble breathing. She couldn't move.

Then, from out of nowhere, Diana heard a scream echoing in her ears…a young scream that she had heard somewhere before a long time ago…and never wanted to remember.

She clamped her hands over her ears, trying to block out the sound.

_/Leave me alone! Stop screaming! It wasn't my fault! Stop it/_

Another scream joined the little girl's: it took Diana a few moments to realize that it was the sound of herself screaming.

"_Expecto Patronum_!" shouted a hoarse voice.

A light shined in front of Diana's eyes, before the cold left her and the train compartment came back into focus. She leaned back against the wall, feeling dizzy and trying to figure out what happened.

"Dare?" asked Hermione worriedly, "Are you alright, Dare?"

"Wake up, Harry-kun," said Mokuba from nearby, "Wake up!"

Diana blinked and looked around the compartment. Hermione, Mokuba and Ron were the only ones who looked the least bit normal. Marik was silent, hugging his knees and looking at the wall vaguely as if trying to assure himself it was just a nightmare. The Yamis each looked extremely pale and more scared than anyone had ever seen them. Harry was on the floor, waking up at Mokuba slapping his face.

"W-what?" Harry stammered in confusion, sitting up dizzily.

"Are you alright, Harry?" asked Ron.

"I…I think so," replied Harry, looking at the doorway for the creature, "What _was_ that thing? Who screamed?"

"Dare did," stated Hermione.

Harry shook his head. "No, it couldn't have been Dare…it sounded _older_ than Dare…an older woman."

"No one else but Dare-kun-" started Mokuba.

A loud snap made them all jump. Professor Lupin was breaking an enormous slab of chocolate into pieces.

"Here," Lupin handed a piece of chocolate to each of the Yamis, Marik, Harry and Diana, "Eat it. It'll help."

Diana looked down at her piece but couldn't bring herself to eat it. "That was a dementor…wasn't it?"

Lupin nodded grimly as he crumpled up the candy wrapper and put it in his pocket. "Indeed. But eat the chocolate, Diana. It will make you feel better. Right now, however, I think I should have a word with the driver."

And so the professor left the compartment. Diana stared down at the chocolate in her hand, before finally forcing herself to eat it. Warmth spread from her throat all the way to her fingers, making her feel a little bit better physically.

"Is everyone alright?" Diana asked her friends.

"_Now_ I am," Marik replied after he took a bite of his chocolate, "But I don't get it…what _happened_? Where did that thing come from?"

"Dementors are the guards of Azkaban," explained Diana, "They're why no one but Black has been able to escape…they're able to suck every happy thought out of you, leaving you nothing but sad thoughts. The more bad things happen to you, the worse the effect a dementor will have on you. Most people in Azkaban go mad within the first two days."

"I think they're horrible," whispered Atem, looking about to cry, "Even _criminals_ don't deserve this."

"But why did Harry hear someone screaming?" asked Mokuba, "I mean, if you're affected worse when you've had bad things happen, how are you affected?"

Diana looked down at the floor. "You hear or see parts of your bad memories. I…I heard a little girl screaming…the girl I killed."

The others looked at the redhead girl in shock.

Ron's eyes widened in understanding. "The Muggle girl?"

Diana nodded mutely.

"What are you two talking about?" asked Marik, "What girl?"

Ron sighed. "It was back when Dare still couldn't control Artemis very well…before we locked her in our basement, we used to lock her in the attic near where the ghoul sleeps…but the attic hasn't been fixed in years because we never had enough money to repair it. One night, Artemis got loose from the attic, left the Burrow and went into the Muggle town nearby…and killed a little Muggle girl who had been playing in the park with some friends."

"All I remember of that day," Diana whispered, "Was when I came around the next morning. Everything Artemis would've felt flashed through me…and then I heard the girl's scream of death echo in my ears. I opened my eyes…and I found myself covered in blood…the girl's blood."

"The Ministry had to do all sorts of stuff to cover it up," Ron finished, "Dare was let off because she was only three at the time, but Fudge warned her if anything like that happened again, he'd have no choice but to lock her up."

The others could only stare at Diana. They could never have imagined that she had had to go through something like that.

Diana tried to shove aside the memories and pain. "But what about you guys? What did you see?"

"I'm not entirely sure," admitted Bakura. "I don't really know _what_ I saw."

"What do you mean, Bakura?" inquired Harry.

"There was a town on fire," replied the Tomb Robber, "And a priest chanting something over a pile of bloody bodies. I don't know _why_ this is important to me…but I…it _terrified_ me. I can't explain it: I've seen many people die before, but this…just seemed so _different_."

Diana put her arms around her friend and gave him a hug to make him feel better. Bakura gave her a forced smile.

"I saw Kisara," whispered Seth.

"Who's Kisara?" asked Hermione.

"The Blue Eyes White Dragon," replied Atem, "And Seth's ancient love. She died saving him from his father."

The Brits and Mokuba looked horrified: Seth only shook his head sadly. "I try not to think about it…but cousin, what did you see? You almost looked more scared than I was."

Atem's scarlet eyes filled up with tears. "I…I saw Yugi…and Orikalkos."

Marik, Bakura, Mokuba and Seth had a look of understanding on their faces.

"What?" Ron asked, "What about Yugi?"

"There was a wacko guy from Atlantis," explained Bakura, "Who tried to collect souls with a card called the Seal of Orikalkos so he could rule the world…you'll notice we know a lot of people like that…anyway, Atem was dueling someone who gave the Seal card to him instead of playing it himself. The card could've helped him win the duel, so Atem played it…but lost. He should've lost his soul…but Yugi sacrificed his own instead. Pharaoh's never quite gotten over it. He feels that he let Yugi down."

"Whoa," Seth sounded impressed, "That was deep, Tomb Robber."

Bakura glared. "Shut it, Priest."

"I guess we all have suffered a lot more than any of us ever knew," Diana stated, smiling sadly, "Well, all we can hope for is that the bad things we've already gone through will not be replaced by something worse."

* * *

**Bakura: Yeesh. That was dark.**

**Kitty: I'll take that as a compliment, Tomb Robber.**

**Yugi: (sniff) Poor Yami-kun...**

**Kitty: (puts a hand on her boyfriend's shoulder) It's okay, Yugi-chan...I'll try not to bring Orikalkos up again. Now, however...I believe it's time for me to answer the reviews...**

_**Kyte** Ha! Like Atem said, some people ARE still under the impression that Yugi is innocent... Sad to say, the longer he hangs around me and our complete sets of perverted friends, there's no way Yugi could remain innocent. Really, when he's with me, Yugi can be quite dirty...but in a really hot way. (smirks) My cats aren't evil, but they are rather arrogant. You'd think I should've called them Gilderoy and Lockhart, even though they're both girls. Me kitties are Great American Kitties, born on July 4th. (winks) I thought about the Artemis/Bakura/Diana relationship, and the thought occured to me that it has weird parallels to Kikyo/Inuyasha/Kagome. I wasn't planning it that way, but it's oddly similar. (crosses her arms in thought)  
_

_**Easily Abused (Emily)** AIIIIIIIIIII, EMESSA! YOU FOUND ME, DEARIE! So much happiness to see you, my loverly. Angst is so uber wonderful to write, even though I am a sucker for a great romance. I've always found actually writing action scenes is really hard, like battles and duels and stuff: that's why this one's the only one of mine called "Action/Adventure." In either case, Bombur is freaking awesome. I'm the only one with the least bit of character for "the Hobbit," yet: all the other dwarfs are boring. (grins) I get to have fun and be a lazy ass. Much love, sister dear.  
_

_**ANAYAS-CREATER** Great that you like it: I love approval. (smiles) I look forward to your update on Code Red. Yeah, I ADORE Monty Python...but no, I've never heard Spamalot. Must make my dad buy it for me, like...NOW. (scowls)  
_

_**SGCred (Claire) **Yep...Dare definitely has an issue here. Well, the good news is that Bakura and Dare will not ever feel the need to stop being friends because of this discovery: there are still plenty of bumps along the road, though. (laughs) I had to do something with Siegfried the Jerk...I mean, I hated him SO much while he was there, even before I knew anything about him...the pink hair was plenty to make me hate him. (whacks Siegfried with a rolled-up magazine) Zi-Lin and Jun-Ling will probably really miss Mokuba, but Mokuba being at Hogwarts will be able to open up a few doors in fanfic theories. Meh, I would LOVE it for Crookshanks to just eat Peter and then end the story there, but...nah. Couldn't fit it in. Drat. Oh well, I'll just have to work on my fics without killing Peter...if that's even possible. Anyway, I'm still trying to make Lina think logically...fortunately, Bakura is hiding out on my chandelier, so he won't be punished for something he has no control over. Thank you for the luck, dear...and for the stork...tell him I'd like a girl named Violet. (winks) Oh...and speaking of Drake...Kaiba ended up catching him following me home after Drama practice yesterday. Both Yugi and Melisanne was a little pissed at me for glomping him in thanks, but now Drake is locked up in the Kaiba mansion until they can get the police to bring him back over to you so you can, uh...handle him. (smirks evilly)  
_

_**Seto's Girl 2004 **Thank you for your encouragement: I can only hope this will be as good. (smiles) And I will try and update again as soon as I can.  
_

_**Setoglomper **Heh, we all know Kaiba loves his fans...as long as they're not rabid stalkers or Vivian Wong, anyway. (winks) Mokuba has a Puffskein (mentioned in Chapter 3), a friendly, furry creature that can eat anything but really likes sticking its long tongue up the noses of sleeping wizards and eating their bogies (see Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them). Thought it'd be appropriate for a teenage boy: sweet, lovable and a tiny biy gross. As to his house...you'll soon see!  
_

_**Lilyqueen777 **I freaked when I saw your reviews for my Cold Day in July chapters and this...really, honey, thanks a bunch. I love getting your reviews. (looks annoyed) Yeah, well, I think all the writers here are a little peeved about these rules... We'll have to see with Bakura and Dare, though, now that Artemis is in the picture. YAY WICKED! (ahem) Sorry, back to business. Yeah, Mokuba's gonna be a wizard like his big bro...and I assure you, the whole thing with Bakura and Artemis will be a big part of this story.  
_

_**Rainbow Guardian Angel **Hello, dearies! I talk to my pets all the time, my trees, the inside of my house...heck, I even talk to myself. Anyone or anything that will or can listen. (grins) I can't wait for Memory World either: when I saw the previews, I was screaming. I mean, for one, we haven't seen Bakura for, like, ever, and we'll get to see Seth and Kisara and all those other effing awesome people. A lot of the other people here are still planning their costumes: Atem and I have been the only ones to finalize a decision. Well, I hope your Halloween plans work out, even if you can't figure out Galadriel. (gives you a hug)_

**Kitty: I have a day off on Friday, so I'll be able to work a nice amount on my fanfics...hopefully I'll be able to finish the next chapter of Egyptian Nights, as I wasn't able to finish it last weekend, much to my disappointment. (pouts)**

**Yugi: (writing on a pad of paper) Kitten?**

**Kitty: Yes?**

**Yugi: Would you rather I be Captain Jack Sparrow, Willy Wonka, Fiyero, my Yami, Jack Skellington, Robin or the Phantom of the Opera for Halloween?**

**Kitty: Corynne changed her mind and decided to be Jack Skellington instead of the Phantom, so don't be him. I think Willy's costume could be tricky...where would you get a cane like his? Atem can be self-centered (cough) andnosyastowhatwe'redoingwhenwe'reinbedtogether (cough), you shouldn't die your hair black all the way for Robin, and your hair isn't long enough for Jack.**

**Yugi: So I'm left with Fiyero and Erik the Phantom of the Opera?**

**Kitty: Indeed. And as Fiyero doesn't have that exciting of a costume and we seem to have musicals on the mind...**

**Yugi: (grins) You think I should be the Phantom.**

**Kitty: (kisses his cheek) Wonderful choice, dear.**

**Bakura: (rolls his eyes) Stupid lovebirds... R&R! **_  
_


	6. Chapter 5: Talons Equal Trouble

**Kitty: (yawns) Today's Saturday, and all's well...**

**Yugi: And you've finished the next chapter. **

**Atem: (peeks his head in) But I thought you were going to work on Egyptian Nights before you posted the next chapter.**

**Kitty: Yeah...funny thing. You know how I sometimes write my favorite parts of the story first?**

**Atem: Yeah...**

**Kitty: Well, this is one of them. All I had to do was edit a few things, and VOILA! It was finished.**

**Bakura: (still on Kitty's chandelier) Cool. Am I in it?**

**Kitty: No...I think you're in enough trouble already. **

**Bakura: (rolls his eyes) **

**Atem: R&R!**

**

* * *

_ Chapter Five:_**

_**Talons Equal Trouble**_

September started with very little enthusiasm, but Diana found that there were plenty of new experiences waiting for her already. Mokuba was sorted into Ravenclaw with his older brother, much to his delight, but had, in truth, had very little time to spend with Seto and the others thanks to their difference in years.

It was the usual in the third years' normal classes so far, and out of the new elective classes Diana took as a third year, Divination was easily the most boring. Professor Trelawney, the Divination teacher, would always make a fool out of herself by screaming and making a fuss over the Grim in Harry's teacup. Diana would always look into Yugi's teacup and pretend to see more reasonable stuff: a sun for happiness (which wasn't hard on Yugi's part) and a man for a visitor (which she pretended was Professor Lupin).

Hermione, who easily considered Divination total garbage, had enough to deal with in all of her other classes, which Diana soon found quite clear.

One day, when the friends were on their way to the Great Hall after Potions, the seam on Hermione's bag came undone, spilling her books all over the floor. Yugi bent down to help her pick them up, and then looked at some of the books' titles.

"Mione-kun, why are you carrying all these around with you?" the King of Games asked, "You couldn't possibly have all these classes. It's only Care of Magical Creatures and Defense Against the Dark Arts today."

"Oh, yes," Hermione replied vaguely, but she still pushed all of the books back into her bag and headed toward the Great Hall, "I hope there's something good for lunch today, I'm starved."

The others watched after her, feeling slightly staggered at her reaction.

"D'you get the feeling Mione's not telling us something?" Diana asked the others, her left eyebrow raised.

* * *

Yugi, Harry, Ron, Hermione and Diana arrived at Hagrid's hut for Care of Magical Creatures, to see that the Slytherins had already gathered around a small paddock near the house.

Hagrid was to be the new Care of Magical Creatures teacher this year as the old teacher, Professor Kettleburn, retired, apparently wanted to "spend more time with his remaining limbs," according to Dumbledore. The Brits and the Japanese boys were obviously delighted for Hagrid: after all, it was no secret that Hagrid loved animals, and after being gamekeeper ever since he was expelled from Hogwarts in fifth year, Diana felt Hagrid deserved a chance to show what he really could do.

Marik came over to, grinning broadly. "Hagrid-san told us he's got something really exciting for us today."

"Just as long as it's not _too_ exciting," Yugi commented dryly.

"What, Mutou, lost your faith in your giant friend?" Malfoy mocked.

"Go back to your rat hole, Malfoy," Diana growled.

Malfoy was never one to listen to Diana, though.

"This place has seriously gone to the dogs," he said loudly, "That oaf teaching classes? I should tell my father about it, I think he'd have something to say about this…"

"Shut up, Malfoy," snapped Harry.

"Careful, Potty, there's a dementor behind you-"

Harry's reaction to the dementor on the train somehow spread through the school, and Malfoy seemed eager to have something else to tease him with. This time, however, the Slytherin barely finished his scornful comment, for he was interrupted by a delighted squeal of "Ooh!" by Lavender Brown.

On the opposite side of the paddock, being led around by Hagrid, were a dozen of some of the most peculiar creatures Diana had ever seen. They had the bodies, hind legs and tails of a horse, yet the front legs, wings and heads of an eagle.

Hagrid steered them toward the fence where everyone was waiting, and the class backed up as he stepped in front of them.

"Hippogriffs!" Hagrid exclaimed, "Beautiful, aren't they?"

Diana, Harry and Marik were the closest to the paddock, and they could see what Hagrid meant. Once you got over the surprise of seeing something that was half horse and half bird, they really were quite beautiful creatures.

"Now, firs' thing ya gotta know abou' hippogriffs is they're real proud," Hagrid instructed, and Diana smiled at how well he was doing it for a first time, "Easily offended, hippogriffs are. Don't never insult one, 'cause it might be the last thing ya eva do."

Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle weren't paying attention, but were whispering to each other in a huddle, and Diana could almost guarantee they were trying to ruin the lesson…one way or another.

"Ya always wait fer the hippogriff ter make the firs' move," Hagrid continued, "It's polite, see? You walk toward him, ya bow, and then ya wait. If he bows back, you're allowed ter touch him. If he don't bow, then get away from him hasty-like, 'cause those talons will hurt. Right…so, who wants teh go first?"

The whole class took a step back at Hagrid's proposal. Even Diana's friends had their misgivings.

"No one?" said Hagrid, looking desperate.

"I'll do it," said Diana, jumping over the paddock fence.

"Good lass, Dare!" Hagrid stated, grinning broadly under his beard, "Right then, let's see how ya get on with Buckbeak."

He pulled a steel gray hippogriff away from the others and in front of Diana, slipping off his leather collar.

The rest of the class seemed to be holding its breath. Malfoy was watching Diana with narrowed eyes, as if imagining what would happen if she messed up.

"Alright, _easy_, Dare…" Hagrid said, "You've got teh get eye contact, and then try not ter blink… Hippogriffs don't trust ya if ya blink too much..."

Diana's eyes immediately started to water, but she didn't shut them. Buckbeak was staring arrogantly at her with his orange eyes.

"_That's_ it," Hagrid said, "_That's_ it, Dare…now _bow_…"

Diana bent down at the waist, not taking her eyes off of the hippogriff until the last few seconds. She came back up and waited.

Then, to Diana's surprise, the hippogriff bent his scaly front knees into an unmistakable bow.

"Well done, Dare!" Hagrid roared, "Now ya can touch 'im."

Diana walked slowly up to Buckbeak.

"Hello, Buckbeak," she whispered, trying to look trustworthy without blinking too much.

She gently stroked the hippogriff's feathers around his neck, smiling subtly and not saying anything else. Buckbeak closed his eyes lazily and made a kind of purring sound in his throat, as if enjoying the attention.

The rest of the class broke out into applause, except for Malfoy and his cronies, who looked disappointed.

"Right then, Dare," Hagrid continued. "I reckon Beaky might let ya ride 'im!"

Diana looked at Hagrid, not worried but excited.

"_Ride_?" she repeated, looking back at Buckbeak at the thought of it, "_Really_?"

"Sure!" Hagrid said, smiling at Diana's enthusiasm, "Just climb up there, jus' behind the wing joint."

Diana nodded, not looking like she had an ounce of fear. She carefully hoisted herself up onto the hippogriff's back.

"Go on, then!" Hagrid exclaimed, slapping Buckbeak's hindquarters.

Diana quickly wrapped her arms around Buckbeak's neck as they soared upward. She looked down to see the others, pointing up at her excitedly.

_/This is so totally wicked/_

She wasn't really flying that high, but it still seemed amazing. It almost felt like she was riding a horse, except she didn't feel a galloping of hooves, but a flapping of wings.

"_YAHOO_!" Diana yelled.

After a few seconds of silent triumph, the redhead felt Buckbeak land roughly back on the ground. She climbed off of the hippogriff's back, before stroking his neck again.

"Thanks, Buckbeak," she said quietly, and Buckbeak nuzzled her face affectionately.

"Good work, Dare!" Hagrid congratulated as almost everyone cheered, "Okay, who else wants a go?"

The rest of the class, emboldened by Diana's success, cautiously starting bowing to the other hippogriffs. Ron and Harry had decided to practice on a silver one, and Yugi was riding the black one he and Marik had bowed to.

"THIS…IS SO _COOL_!" Yugi yelled, "_WAHOO_!"

He heard his Yami click his tongue disapprovingly, and he smirked.

_/Your turn, Yami-kun…/_

Suddenly Atem was on top of the black hippogriff instead of Yugi.

"_AH_!"

The past Pharaoh wrapped his arms around the hippogriff's neck and closed his eyes as he felt them go higher and higher and higher…

_/Open your eyes, Yami-kun/_ Yugi urged, _/C'mon, it's fun/_

_-No way am I looking down!-_ Atem snapped back, forcing his eyes completely shut.

_/Damn it, Yami-kun, open your eyes/_

Shocked at his Hikari cursing, the past Pharaoh opened his eyes.

And he realized…

Yugi was _right_.

This _was_ fun…

"_YEAAAAAHHHH_!" Atem whooped, shaking one fist in the air like a triumphant cowboy on his bucking bronco.

Diana was watching Hermione as she tried to get one of the chestnut ones to bow back to her when three familiar Slytherins ruined Hagrid's class.

Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle had taken over Buckbeak, who had already bowed to the three of them; Malfoy was petting the creature's beak, a derisive look on his face.

"This is _easy_," he said loudly, "I knew it _must_ be, if Wrong-Sex Randall could do it. You're not dangerous at all, are you?" he looked arrogantly at Buckbeak, "Are you, you big ugly brute?"

What happened next was in a flash of talons and a girlish scream. Soon, Hagrid was wrestling Buckbeak back into his collar while trying to get to where Malfoy was curled up on the grass, blood staining the left sleeve of his robes.

"I'm _dying_!" he wailed as the class panicked, "I'm _dying_! It's _killed_ me!"

"You're not dyin'!" Hagrid said, his face very white as he supported Malfoy up to the castle.

The rest of the class followed.

After Hagrid was out of earshot, the Slytherins began shouting furiously.

"They should fire him, right away!" Pansy Parkinson shrieked, traces of angry tears in her eyes.

"It was Malfoy's own fault!" snapped Diana, "If he had just listened to what Hagrid _said _instead of being an idiot, he wouldn't have gotten scratched!"

Pansy didn't pay attention to Diana's statement: instead she turned on her heel and sniffed, "I'm gonna go see if he's okay!" before heading for the Hospital Wing. The other Slytherins continued to mutter rude things about Hagrid, except for Marik, whose furious eyes could've shot fire and burned them all to a crisp.

"D'you think he'll be alright, though?" asked Yugi, sounding worried, "If anything lasting happens to him, Hagrid-san might have to quit…or he'll be _fired_…"

"Relax, Yugi," said Harry, "Madame Pomfrey can heal anything. She had to re-grow all the bones in my right arm last year. She can fix Malfoy's cut in a about two seconds."

"Figures, don't it," Diana muttered sullenly, "The best class I've ever had ended up being ruined by Malfoy. I mean, Buckbeak really was pretty wicked…in fact, by Hagrid's standards, he's quite cute."

"Don't worry, Dare," Hermione consoled, putting a hand on her friend's shoulder, "I'm sure everything will work out."

"I sure hope so, Mione," Diana replied with a sigh.

* * *

**Kitty: End chapter.**

**Atem: Wow, I had fun in this chapter.**

**Yugi: Thanks to me: is it just me, Yami-kun, or do you always end up doing the right thing if you listen to me?**

**Atem: (glares) It's just you.**

**Noa: (comes into Kitty's room) Hey, Kitty.**

**Kitty: Hey, Noa-kun. How's Lina?**

**Noa: As stubborn as ever...she threw stun darts at me as soon as I started talking about Artemis...that stupid bitch.**

**Bakura: DON'T GO TALKING AOBUT MY GIRLFRIEND LIKE THAT, YOU VIRTUAL BRAT-**

**Kitty: AHEM. If you don't mind, Bakura, I need to answer the reviews, so shut up.**

**_Lilyqueen777 _**_I love Remus, too: he's my fav Marauder, although Sirius is definitely a very close second. And what do you know? I have updated much sooner than expected. Well, Bakura doesn't really care about Atem, but he does understand the Hikari-Yami dependance...if anything, it's his caring of his own Hikari that helps him understand how Atem feels about it. Mokuba's a pretty smart cookie, though, and obviously his desire to be in Ravenclaw is another reason he likely ended up in Ravenclaw (Harry's a good example to this). I only am not able to respond to reviews in script format (a.k.a. having Yugi, Atem, Bakura et all answer it with me), which does put a damper on my spirits as it's really fun to have the chars express their opinions, but oh well, at least answering reviews isn't barred completely.  
_

**_Seto's Girl 2004 _**_Thank you kindly, dear. Hope this chapter came fast enough for your liking. Seto isn't here at the moment as his work is keeping him at KaibaCorp, but I'll be sure to call him in his office and tell him you said hi: I usually call him anyway to tell him a new chapter's been posted and to annoy the hell out of him, so it'd be convinient. (wink)  
_

**_ANAYAS-CREATER _**_I'm pleased you liked it: it's always good to get praise from people who write stories I love to read as much as they like to read mine. Awesome for you! I've heard braces can be a pain, although I've never had them myself, but at least they've finally liberated you from their grasp!  
_

**_SGCred (Claire) _**_I say for now the best thing I can do with Lina is to just leave her alone and let her cool off...really, she can be so stubborn...then again, I can be too. Ha, Seth's always trying to be the mature one: he doesn't really like the Tomb Robber, but he's learned that holding grudges doesn't really help anything...Atem and Bakura, on the other hand, certainly love trying to think up ways to hurt and tease each other. Well, as Bakura's still a little shaky from his encounter with the dementor, I guess I'll have to kick him myself...if I can get him off my chandelier for just a few seconds. (glares in Atem's direction) Blackmail is always one of the best ways to keep people quiet...and hey, Yugi and I had fun, so it all works out. (smirks) Yeah, poor Dare: it gave her a reason to need to hold back Artemis, as she never wishes to hurt her friends like she had that girl. She was very young at the time, too, so that scarred her badly. And to Bakura...it has to do with the Egyptian past mostly, and why he hates Atem so much. It does have a tiny bit to do with Artemis, though: it's part of the reason the two were so close. More about it will be explained as the fic progresses. Marik's memory will be explained by the end of the fic, around the same time as Roth's warning finally becomes clear. Peter would be a welcome guest at the Bash-a-thon, methinks. (grins evilly) And don't be worried if Drake comes back to you with his body bruised and his sanity damaged...I couldn't keep him away from Atem and Yugi. (winks) You KNOW that Yugi and I won't ever pass up an excuse to have some fun. (hugs) Thanks for talking to the stork for us, mate: Yugi-chan will be ecstatic...even if he'll probably faint at the thought of being a father first. (sweatdrop)  
_

**_Setoglomper _**_Well, here's more writing to read! (glares at Seth) YOU MEANIE! (whacks him on the head) How dare you dash her dreams! (sighs) Of course, I can't lie and say Seto loves you, but we ALL know that Kaiba secretly likes all of his fans. It boosts his self-confidence...I should know. (smirks evilly) Melisanne is a wonderful source of information.  
_

**_Egyptiankitty (Engie) _**_Mokie's in Ravenclaw! (lets you cheer) It's alright that you weren't able to review immediately, hun: better late than never, especially when it comes to reviews from friends. Thanks for your praise: I haven't had much practice with angst and usually I don't act out angst as well as humor, but it seems that writing is a different story, as I am really liking this. (grins) And Artemis really doesn't understand how much she ends up scarring Dare...if she weren't my own char and she didn't have a fascinating past, I'd be tempted to hurt her severely.  
_

**_Kyte _**_Thank you for that, dearie: I've been trying to get him to leave Yugi and me to our business since forever. And I think it's be at least more comfy to sleep on a pile of gold than a chandelier...for one, there's no support really for a sleeping boy, and secondly, if he tosses and turns, his hair and clothes could catch on fire. (shivers) Dementors are scary, scary things...and the worst part is I'll have to write about them all over again around Order of the Phoenix... (whimpers) You're in Drama Club too? Cool, what's going to be your next performance, do you know? (smiles) Well, "dark" is what I was attempting: at least I know it worked now.  
_

**_Jimmy_**_ It's alright, my loverly: I don't mind if reviews are late. (frowns) Sorry about being grounded...I know that can REALLY suck ass. I'm really glad you like it, though. Hope you will be liberated from your horrid grounding soon. (gives you a hug)_

**Kitty: Well now, let's see...I've still got to work on Egyptian Nights and I'll Worship You Forever... (sweatdrop) Posting this chapter just made me force their updates down even more and feel even more guilty. **

**Yugi: (gives Kitty a hug) It'll be alright, Kitten.**

**Kitty: (gives Yugi a peck on the cheek) **_  
_**  
Noa: R&R, peoples!**


	7. Chapter 6: Riddikulus!

**Kitty: (dressed as the Wicked Witch of the West) Happy Halloween, all! **

**Yugi: (dressed as the Phantom of the Opera) We're all here, costume and make-uped...**

**Atem: (dressed in his Pharaoh garb) Ready to answer your reviews and present to you the next chapter of Let Me Fall.**

**Noa: (dressed as a pirate) I'd say we all look pretty awesome.**

**Kaiba: (dressed as a chibi Blue Eyes White Dragon) I wouldn't say so: I swear, I will seriously get back at the two certain someones who made me wear this...**

**Mokuba and Seth: (whistle innocently)**

**Kitty: And YES, Egyptian Nights's next chapter is in progress...I'm, like, 9/10 finished with it...I just have to figure out how to end it. I promise, I'll have down by tomorrow, which is a day off for me. (sighs) **

**Yugi: And now, my Angels of Music...R&R!**

**

* * *

**_**Chapter Six:**_

_**Riddikulus!**_

That afternoon, the Gryffindors and the Slytherins waited the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom for Professor Lupin to arrive.

Malfoy had swaggered into the classroom five minutes later than the rest of the class, his arm in a bandage and sling, looking as if he were a martyr in a passionate battle. And, ironically, as Pansy Parkinson and some of the other Slytherin girls started fussing about whether or not he was alright, Diana actually wondered if they saw him that way.

"_Honestly_," she muttered under her breath to Marik, "It was only a _scratch_…Madame Pomfrey probably already _healed_ it…"

"Come on, Dare-kun," Marik replied with a smirk, "You didn't _really_ think that Malfoy wouldn't ham up his injury to get the girls he usually can't get to fawn over him, did you?"

Diana smiled to herself in amusement, taking out a quill and some parchment to prepare for another boring hour of writing notes from the textbook. It was then, however, that Professor Lupin finally arrived.

He set his tattered briefcase down on his desk before turning to the class and saying, "You can put your books and parchment away. We're going to have a practical lesson today."

Diana and Marik exchanged a curious look, before looking over at Harry, Ron, Yugi and Hermione, who were sitting on the opposite side of the room. The four also looked surprised as the students started packing up, muttering amongst each other. They'd never had a real practical lesson before, unless one counted the time last year when their ex-professor, Gilderoy Lockhart, brought in a cage full of Cornish Pixies and set them loose.

The class followed Professor Lupin out of the room and down the hall, where Peeves, the school poltergeist, was bent over a keyhole, shoving a wad of chewing gum inside.

Diana shook her head, still smiling. Peeves never did change.

Peeves finally turned to look at Professor Lupin when he was but an inch away from him, and he cackled mischievously.

"_Loony, loopy Lupin_!" Peeves sang in an annoying way, "_Loony, loopy Lupin! Loony, loopy Lupin_!"

Diana's eyes shot to look at Professor Lupin to see how'd he take this. To her surprise, he was still smiling subtly.

"I'd take that gum out of the keyhole if I were you, Peeves," Professor Lupin spoke to the poltergeist quite conversationally, "Mr. Filch won't be able to get into his brooms."

Peeves didn't reply except to blow a loud raspberry.

Lupin sighed, and took out his wand.

"This is a useful little spell," he murmured to the class, "Please watch closely."

He raised his wand, pointed it at Peeves and said, "_Waddiwasi_!"

The wad of gum shot out of the keyhole like a bullet, and shot into Peeves' left nostril. The poltergeist sped away, cursing. The Gryffindors laughed, and Diana couldn't help but see the professor with more respect than she had before.

"That was _awesome_, Lupin-sensei!" Marik said, grinning broadly.

"Thank you, Marik," Lupin replied pleasantly, "Shall we proceed?"

They continued down the hall, finally arriving at the deserted staff room…well, _almost_ deserted.

Snape was sitting back in an armchair, reading a leather-bound book Diana recognized from last year as _Moste Potente Potions_.

Snape did glare at Lupin when he entered, though, which was not much of a surprise to Diana, since he had applied for Lupin's job since he first became a professor at Hogwarts.

"Leave it open, Lupin," Snape muttered as he stood, "I'd rather not witness this."

Snape reached the door, and turned around to add, "_Possibly_ no one's warned you, Lupin, but this class contains Yugi Mutou. He may be the King of Games back in China, but I wouldn't entrust him with anything _too_ difficult…unless one of his friends is whispering instructions in his ear."

The Slytherins sniggered. Yugi went red and looked at the floor in embarrassment. Diana shot Snape a dirty look.

"He's from _Japan_, not China," she snapped, "And Yugi's fine, you just pick on him, that's all."

Snape looked at Diana with cold eyes, and the class immediately knew she'd gone too far. Malfoy smirked, knowing Diana was in for it this time…

Lupin, however, stepped in.

"Actually, I was hoping that Yugi would assist me in the first step of the operation," he said simply, "And I believe he'll perform it admirably."

Yugi blushed even redder, but he smiled at Lupin in gratitude. Snape's upper lip curled and he shot Diana, then Lupin, an irate glare before shutting the door firmly behind him.

Lupin led the class over to an old wardrobe in the left corner of the room that wobbled suddenly, making some of the students back away in shock.

"Nothing to worry about," Lupin assured them, "It's just a boggart in there."

But most of the class still acted like it _was_ something to worry about. Neville Longbottom sputtered a little in terror, and Ron eyed the shaking doorknob apprehensively. Diana, however, was paying all of her attention to Professor Lupin, which was something she rarely did for a professor, and didn't look scared at all.

"Boggarts like dark, enclosed spaces," the professor continued, "Wardrobes, the gap beneath beds…I even found one that lodged itself in a grandfather clock. _This_ one moved in yesterday, and I asked the headmaster to leave it to give my third years some practice. Now the first question we must ask ourselves is: what _is_ a boggart?"

Not to anyone's surprise, Hermione's hand was the first one up in the air, but Diana's hand raised right after hers, which caused Harry to give her an inquisitive look.

"Yes, Diana?" Lupin asked.

"It's a shape-shifter," Diana answered, trying to ignore Malfoy's mocking gaze, "It takes the shape of whatever will frighten us the most."

"Couldn't have said it better myself," Lupin said, making Diana smile, "So this boggart has not yet assumed a form. It doesn't know what will frighten the person on the other side of the door yet. Already we have a distinct advantage over the boggart…can you tell me what that is, Draco?"

Malfoy looked up from the conversation he and his cronies were having in surprise. He was rarely called on for questions, particularly if he didn't raise his hand.

"Uh…"

Hermione was waving her hand back and forth in the air, and Diana was watching Malfoy carefully, wondering if there was a chance he could actually answer it right.

"Um...because…because there's so many of us…it won't know what shape it should be?"

"Right you are," Lupin said, not looking the least bit disappointed that he'd answered it correctly.

Malfoy smirked in a very arrogant way as Pansy swooned over him, and Diana rolled her eyes.

_/One correct answer, and he thinks he's king of the world…/_ she thought disdainfully.

"It becomes confused," Lupin continued, "Which should it become, a headless corpse or a man-eating slug? I once saw a boggart make that very same mistake, and tried to frighten two people at once by turning into a half a slug…not remotely frightening. What _really_ finishes a boggart off is _laughter_. What you need to do is force it into a shape you find amusing. The charm itself is rather simple. Repeat after me…_Riddikulus_!"

"_Riddikulus_!" the class repeated.

"Good," Lupin complimented, "Very good. But that's just the _easy_ part, I'm afraid. Now this is where you come in, Yugi."

It was here he turned to look at Yugi.

"Tell me, what is it that you'd say is your worst fear?"

"Well…" Yugi said, "I guess one of my friends getting hurt."

Lupin gave Yugi a very sympathetic look.

"I believe you have a girlfriend named Kitty?" he asked.

Yugi nodded. "I really, _really_ don't want her to get hurt again, Lupin-sensei…"

Lupin nodded in understanding. "I wonder, could you tell us about her?"

Yugi blinked. "Um…she's quiet…and shy…but she's a great writer."

"And she likes Josh Groban almost as much as Yugi!" Diana said.

The Gryffindor girls laughed as Diana and Hermione exchanged a grin.

Lupin smiled. "I assume that _'Josh Groban'_ is a handsome young celebrity whom Kitty swoons over until Yugi can pull her away from her signed poster of him?"

"That's him!" Diana grinned.

"Heartthrob extraordinaire!" Hermione added.

"With the voice of an angel!" Parvati screamed.

All the girls (alright, mostly Muggle-borns) were cheering, and most of the boys were sweatdropping.

"Alright then," Lupin said, "I think that could be used…Yugi, can you picture Josh Groban in your mind's eye?"

Yugi grinned. "How could I _not_? Neko-chan's whole room is plastered with posters of him."

"Not that I blame her," Lavender whispered, before breaking into giggles with Parvati.

"Good," the professor replied, "Because when the boggart comes out of the wardrobe, it will assume the form of a badly hurt Kitty. At that time, you will raise your wand and cry '_Riddikulus_.' If all goes well, Josh Groban will appear and Kitty will immediately start swooning over him like these girls are right here."

Yugi could barely hold back a grin as the other boys laughed. All of the girls scowled except for Diana, who smiled in slight amusement.

"Now, if Yugi is successful," Lupin cut in, "The boggart will turn its attention to each of you in turn. I now want you all to think of the one thing you fear the most, and a way to make it funny." 

Diana frowned. What _was_ she most afraid of? She'd never really thought about it before.

_/I don't really remember being afraid of anything/ _she thought to herself, _/I mean, I've been in plenty of scary situations, but I doubt that any of those things could be duplicated by a boggart…well, I guess I'll just have to see what it is and then think of something to make it funny on my feet./_

Right then, Yugi stepped in front of the wardrobe and drew his wand out of his robes.

_-You sure you can do this, Yugi-kun?-_ asked Atem.

_/I don't know, Yami-kun/_ Yugi admitted, _/If anything…I need to do this./_

Lupin waved his wand and the wardrobe burst open.

Out came Kitty, her hazel eyes blank, her glasses askew, countless bruises on her face and blood staining her shirt.

"Yugi-chan…" she whispered weakly, before collapsing in front of him.

Yugi fought not to cry as he said, "_Riddikulus_!"

Josh Groban appeared, singing in his angelic Tenor voice, and Kitty immediately leapt off of the ground and screamed like a fan girl, her eyes hearts.

"Parvati! Forward!" Lupin yelled.

Parvati Patil jumped forward, ready to take on the creature.

Boggart Kitty looked at her with blank eyes, and with a large _CRACK_, there was a bloodstained, bandaged mummy. Its wrapped face turned to her as it dragged its feet toward her, raising its stiff arms...

"_Riddikulus_!" Parvati screamed.

The bandages unraveled and got tangled around the mummy's feet. It fell face first and its head rolled off.

_/Yeesh…glad that wasn't any of the Yamis/_ Diana thought.

"Marik!" Lupin bellowed.

Marik jumped in front of Parvati, his face set and determined.

_CRACK_!

Someone who looked exactly like Marik appeared, except his hair stood up in several places and his eyes were a darker shade and seemed to be doorways to a heartless soul…

"_Malik_," breathed Yugi, his violet eyes wide.

Marik glared at the Boggart Malik with nothing less than loathing, before yelling, "_Riddikulus_!"

Boggart Malik found himself in a cage. When he tried to speak, all he could do was squawk.

He had turned into a cockatoo.

"Diana!" Lupin shouted.

_/Figures/ _thoughtDiana, as she darted past Marik, her wand out and ready.

_CRACK!_

Diana stared in horror as a being her height, with gold eyes, light blue skin and white hair came into view…

_It was Artemis._

A few people (one Diana recognized as Malfoy) screamed, and Lupin's eyes went wide with panic.

Diana staggered backward, her eyes wide and not having a clue what to do. Boggart Artemis lunged and pinned her to the wall.

"Not _scared_, are you, Hikari?" she hissed like an angry cobra, a fanged smirk on her face, "Well, I'm not _surprised_…you never _could_ fight back against me…you're just a weak little girl who needs protection from a past thief…it's really too bad he only cares about you because you remind him of _me_…"

Diana felt a fiery surge of anger; she jabbed her wand between her almost Yami's eyes and roared, "_RIDDIKULUS_!"

Boggart Artemis's golden eyes became slits and her weight became almost nothing: Diana's boggart had turned into a black cat, and it leapt off of her with a confused meow.

Diana breathed hard as she stood up and let Ron step in front of her to have his turn with the boggart.

_/Artemis…/ _she thought, _/Of all the things to see…I had to see her…/

* * *

_

**Kitty: End chapter.**

**Yugi: Well, I think that works for creepiness on this Halloween.**

**Noa: I would say so too. **

**Lina: (comes in dressed as Kagome) Hey, all.**

**Kitty: Hey, Lina. Finally made up with Bakura?**

**Lina: Yes...he and I made a deal. I'd talk to and sleep with him again if he dressed up with me for Halloween.**

**Kitty: (eyes widen) Oh, no...don't tell me-**

**Bakura: (comes in dressed as Inuyasha, much to his displeasure)**

**Atem: (is rolling over on the floor laughing) **

**Yugi: (trying not to laugh) Well, Bakura...you and Inuyasha-san DO look a lot alike.**

**Bakura: (glares at Yugi) Oh, shut it.**

**Kitty: Now...for the ever-so-spooky reviews. (winks)**

**_Egyptiankitty (Engie) _**_Meh, I love making Mokuba-chan happy. (whacks Malfoy just because she can) Heh. Well, I didn't update as fast as I did before as Egyptian Nights is so hard to write for right now thanks to the major action scene... (sigh) Wow, interesting fic idea: I can't say I've heard of many KH/PoTO crossovers. Sounds cool. (gives you a hug) I'll read it tomorrow if I can.  
_

**_SGCred (Claire) _**_I don't hate Trelawney, but third book she did get on my nerves. I mean, I love astrology, but honestly, that Saturn-Harry's Birthday thing was whacked. It's called influences on his sign...a Leo with Saturn influences means he gets bad attention that increases over time. Geez, it's not that hard to figure out...well, okay, for an astrology buff. (sweatdrop) If you look at Artemis as a Greek Goddess, the animal links are there. Of course, Dark Artemis and Greek Artemis aren't the same person, but I like the connection. (grins) I wish something worse had happened to Malfoy, but technically I'm not supposed to hurt his that much...yet. FINALLY Lina has stopped being her annoyingly stubborn self: only if you do what she asks can you get through to her. (shakes her head) And Bakura suffers because of it, often...oh well, at least this Inuyasha thing should suffice for blackmail to make him stop bugging me for a while. Yeah, I did notice there's a connection between Melisanne's and Dare's problems: actually thought I could use that later in the fic...I just need to figure out exactly where to place it in the story. (raises an eyebrow at Drake's symptoms, and then mutters something to Yugi) Uh...apparently Yugi is hiding some squirrels from my trip to the Grand Canyon in my room...he's taught them martial arts...and he's named them all Drake. (sweatdrop) My boyfriend's genius does scare me at times...  
_

**_Kyte _**_(gives you a hug) Not having any lines sucks ass: I should know. I had to go through that all middle school. (whacks her old Drama coach with a large mouth bass) Ooh, Incredibles! I love Incredibles. (ahem) Anyway...yeah, Buckbeak IS wicked. Hopefully the future Bash-a-thon will put Malfoy in his place.  
_

**_lilyqueen777 _**_Don't worry, he'll be important later. I can't say it's going to be immediate, but his being there will be important. Glad you found those parts funny: I was hoping they would be. (smiles)  
_

**_Seto's Girl 2004 _**_Small? (frowns) I didn't think so...but whatever. My chapters can vary in lengths, but are rarely shorter than six and half pages long. And you don't annoy me, dear. No reviewer could ever annoy me, except perhaps flamers.  
_

**_ANAYAS-CREATER _**_My family has a history of good teeth...sometimes I wish everyone shares that luck. I really loved those scenes too: one of the main reasons I started writing it first. And I'll try and update again soon.  
_

_**Rainbow Guardian Angel **I guess Atem hasn't had much experiences with heights...I mean, he's ridden horses before, but I doubt he's ever ridden one that flies with no reins or anything to hold onto. Don't worry about not reviewing Chapter 5, hun: you reviewing alone makes the difference. (laughs) I liked that part too. Thought it stopped Bakura from seeming too OOC, being all nice with Dare... And Buckbeak is total awesomeness.  
_

_**XXXDownWithTheSystemXXX (Jimmy) **Dare/Bakura will be subtle until around Order of the Phoenix time, unfortunately, but it will build up along the way. Conflicts are in store for those two...even more than Artemis stands in their way...but that will make their love ever more stronger. Oh, I wish I could do that...but my priority still remains: I can't kill any of the characters...but now that I think about it, just because I lock Artemis and Pettigrew together in a room doesn't automatically means Pettigrew will die...ooh, must save that for Bashing. And seeing your email was enough for me to figure out it was you...that, and I think you're the only person in the world who's ever called me your "homie." (winks)  
_

_**Easily Abused (Emily) **Heya, Emessa-chan! Well, I really talked to you about your review on Xanga (the one I could see, anyway, considering one of your reviews only showed up as "J"), but yessssssssssssssssssssssss, I love teh dark. I am immersed in it, and not just by Yugi, my own personal Phantom, singing Music of the Night in my ear. (smiles) I love you muchies, sister dear. Talk to you soon._

**Kitty: Hope you guys get tons of candy! I'm just hoping the Tootsie Rolls in the Trick-or-Treat basket won't all get taken...me is OBSESSED with Tootsie Rolls. (grins)**

**Lina: R&R, everyone! **


	8. Chapter 7: A Black Halloween

**Kitty: (sobbing at her desk) Ohhhhhh, I'm so _horrible_...how can I not update this fic in so long?**

**Yugi: (gives Kitty a hug) It's alright, Neko-chan, it's alright. I'm here.**

**Kitty: (sniff) (sniff) I feel like a horrible authoress. I'm so sorry, everyone. I'M SORRY! **

**Noa: We forgive you, Kitty. **

**Atem: (nods in agreement)**

**Kitty: Thanks, guys. (sighs) Well, here's the new chapter, at last.**

**Bakura: R&R, losers.**

**Kitty: (whacks him with her Whack-a-Mole mallet)**

**

* * *

_ Chapter Seven:_**

_**A Black Halloween**_

Diana was not at all surprised to hear people talking about how awesome Professor Lupin's classes were the next two weeks. In fact, the only people she could find not saying good things about him were Draco Malfoy and his usual Slytherin cronies, and all they could seem to complain about was the state of his robes. 

Diana herself was still a little shaken at seeing her boggart: it made sense, since it seemed at times that Artemis's whole purpose was to torture her, whether by hurting her or making her hurt others. Then again, Diana reasoned, her issue with seeing that boggart was part of the point of that first class…to learn how to conquer your fears…and that only proved to her just how good of a teacher Lupin really was.

The following Defense Against the Dark Arts lessons were just as interesting to Diana and her friends as the first one: after boggarts, they studied Red Caps, goblin-like creatures that lurked where blood had been shed, and Kappas, creepy, monkey-looking demons that enjoyed strangling unwitting waders in their ponds.

Diana's only wish was that she could have just as much fun in her other classes. She had never really enjoyed most of them that much before, but now they were ready to make her snap.

Snape had been in a very dangerous mood ever since Lupin's first class: now, whenever Lupin was mentioned, even in the most indistinct of ways, the person speaking could get a week of detentions. Diana knew he had always wanted the Defense Against the Dark Arts job, but she had never, ever seen Snape act this way toward any of the previous teachers.

Trelawney's wailing about Harry's approaching death didn't cease: if anything, she had been extra careful to notify him about it twice as much. Diana was very close to yelling at the professor that Harry had survived a lot more than she had and therefore had more of a chance of living long and well than she did. Even Hermione was getting frustrated with Divination classes, and she usually showed unwavering respect for teachers.

Care of Magical Creatures, which at first seemed like it would be Diana's favorite subject, had now become rather dull. Hagrid seemed to have lost his confidence, and with what happened his very first day, Diana couldn't blame him for being a bit shaken. Now all the students could study was how to properly care for flobberworms, which were likely the most boring creature in the history of the world, as all they did was eat and sleep.

Halloween was quickly approaching, and a poster posted on the Gryffindor notice board announced that that would also be the first Hogsmeade weekend.

Hogsmeade was a little Wizarding village just outside of the Hogwarts grounds where, with a signed permission slip, students third year and up could do their shopping. Diana was very excited to see it, but her spirits were dampened when she heard that two of her friends would not be able to come with her.

"The Dursleys didn't sign my form," sighed Harry, "Come on, Dare, do you _really_ think they would after what happened with my Aunt Marge?"

"I sent it off to my dad by owl when I first got it," said Ryou, "He's in Egypt somewhere, but I haven't gotten a reply from him…of course, I rarely get _anything_ from him these days…"

"But you _have_ to come!" Diana pleaded, looking upset, "Hogsmeade sounds so _fun_! _Surely_ one of the teachers would understand your circumstances!"

"I already tried talking to Professor Sprout," Ryou muttered, referring to the Herbology teacher and Hufflepuff's Head of House, "And she said no. No signature, no entry. That's the rule."

The others tried to help their two friends also, but it was no use. Seto offered to forge signatures on their permission slips, but as Ryou had already told Sprout his form wasn't signed, she'd know it was fake. Ron suggested that Harry and Ryou could easily fit under the Invisibility Cloak and sneak in, but Hermione stamped on that one, pointing out dementors could see through them. All the friends could do was assure Ryou and Harry they'd bring lots of things back for them, and although that didn't make the two feel that much better, Ryou and Harry knew that was all they could hope for.

* * *

Feeling guilty at leaving her friends alone at school that Halloween, Diana headed into Hogsmeade village with the least enthusiasm as could be thought possible going in for the first time. Even the mounds of chocolate and fantastic sweets in Honeydukes couldn't cheer her up. She didn't feel the least bit better until she finally joined back up with Harry and a newly appeared Bakura near the front entrance. 

"How was it?" asked Harry as the group headed down toward the Great Hall together.

"Okay," Diana said in a monotone.

"It was really fun," Hermione replied as she sat next to Diana, "Dare just was feeling miserable that you guys weren't with us…of course, we _all_ missed you."

"All the shops were _incredible_," agreed Seto, "I wish you guys could've seen Zonkos joke shop…even Fred and George's wildest dreams couldn't have created it."

"Honeydukes was _awesome_," added Yugi, "I must have bought at least a dozen of those Fizzing Whizbee things."

"The post office…_wow_, I've never seen so many owls in my _life_," Marik grinned, "They were all color-coded depending on how fast you want your letter to be sent."

"Wish we could've brought back some butterbeer for you guys," Ron sighed, "Really warms you up-"

"So what did you do while we were gone?" Diana interrupted her friends' excited jabber.

"Lupin made us some tea in his office," responded Bakura, "He showed us the grindylow he was going to do for our next lesson-"

"A _grindylow_?" Diana repeated, her eyes suddenly bright at the mention of a magical creature she'd seen pictures of in _Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them_, "Wicked!"

"Yeah, I guess it kind of was," Harry shrugged, "But then Snape came in with this weird goblet…I think it was _smoking_…"

"Looked like the mist dry ice makes for Muggle Halloween parties," Bakura nodded, "Snape said that Lupin should drink it immediately, and then left it on his desk. He also mentioned he made an entire cauldronful if he needed more. Then he left."

"Lupin told us he'd been feeling off-color and that the potion was the only thing that helped," said Harry, "Apparently not many people would want to make it. But I _doubt_ Snape was actually helping Lupin."

Bakura nodded. "He didn't look very _helpful_ to me: more along the lines of _murderous_..."

"Do you think that Snape trying to poison Lupin?" Ron asked.

"I'd expect nothing _less_ of him," growled Marik.

"But would Snape _really_ try to poison Lupin with you two there to see him?" inquired Seto, "Seems a tad risky to me."

"And why would Snape say he had an entire cauldronful if Professor Lupin needed more when he was trying to kill him?" pointed out Hermione, "That cauldronful would hint to other people that he was responsible."

Diana nodded. "That, and why would Lupin _need_ more? I'd think one drink would finish him off. I think it's more likely that Snape _is_ helping him, but obviously not _willingly_."

Yugi and Seto nodded in agreement.

"I suppose you guys have a point," sighed Bakura, "I just hope Snape-baka doesn't try anything…"

* * *

Snape didn't end up trying anything that night. Halloween in the Great Hall went on as scheduled, decorated with the normal Jack-O-Lanterns, flaming orange streamers and fluttering live bats, and the food was as delicious as ever. 

Lupin didn't look very poisoned: he was smiling and was involved with an animated conversation with Professor Flitwick. If anything, Snape looked more like _he_ had gotten poisoned, since he looked even more bad-tempered than usual.

The feast ended with an awesome reenactment by the Hogwarts ghosts of Nearly Headless Nick's botched beheading. Even Harry and Ryou, still upset with not being able to go to Hogsmeade with the others, couldn't remain upset after the feast.

Harry, Ron, Hermione, Yugi and Diana bid goodbye to the others as they followed the rest of the Gryffindors up the staircase toward Gryffindor Tower. But when they reached the corridor that ended with the Fat Lady's portrait, they found it completely jammed with the other Gryffindor students.

"Why isn't anyone going in the portrait hole?" asked Yugi, jumping up and down as to try and see above the heads of the other students.

"Dunno," muttered Diana.

It was then that Percy arrived, and he shoved importantly through the front of the crowd.

"What's the hold-up here? You can't _all_ have forgotten the password! _Excuse_ me, I'm Head Boy-"

Percy then stopped speaking abruptly, as if something at the front of the crowd had ripped his vocal cords out so he could no longer make a sound.

"Somebody get Professor Dumbledore," Percy said at last in a very sharp voice, "_Quick_."

A first year girl struggled through the crowd and ran down the hallway toward Dumbledore's office.

Diana and Harry exchanged a worried look.

_/Why do we need Dumbledore to come?.../ _Diana asked herself,_ /What happened?.../_

A moment later, Dumbledore arrived, sweeping toward the portrait hole. The Gryffindors rushed out of the way and lined the walls to let him through, and when they did, the five Gryffindors could peek her head around them to see what the trouble was.

Hermione gasped in horror.

The Fat Lady wasn't there in her portrait, and it was obvious why. The painting had slashed so violently that there were large holes where canvas had once been and strips of it littered the stone floor.

"Someone attacked her," Diana whispered, "Someone attacked her to try and get into our common room."

"But…_who_?" asked Ron.

"And _why_?" remarked Yugi.

Dumbledore turned as McGonagall, Lupin and Snape hurried toward him.

"We need to find her," he told them, "Minerva, please go find Mr. Filch at once and tell him to search every painting in the castle for the Fat Lady."

"You'll be lucky!" cackled the mischievous voice of Peeves.

And indeed, the poltergeist had just appeared, bouncing around on top of some of the student's heads as if they were trampolines.

"What do you mean, Peeves?" inquired Dumbledore calmly.

Peeve's grin faltered a little: he didn't dare taunt Dumbledore. With that in mind, he put on his horrible oily voice.

"_Ashamed_, Your Headship, sir," he said happily, "Doesn't want to be _seen_…she's a horrible _mess_. Saw her running through the landscape up on the fourth floor, sir, dodging between the trees and crying something _dreadful_…poor thing," he added unconvincingly.

"Did she say who did it?" Dumbledore asked quietly.

"Oh _yes_, Professorhead," Peeves replied, "He got _very_ angry when she wouldn't let him in, you see…"

He flipped over and grinned at Dumbledore from between his legs.

"Nasty temper he's got, that Sirius Black."

* * *

**Yugi: DUN DUN DUN!**

**Atem: Uh oh.**

**Bakura: (rubbing a bump on his head) Seems security wasn't as good as they thought...then again, everything in the world has that problem, it seems.**

**Lina: Indeed. **

**Kitty: (nods in agreement) Well, I have just noticed that there is a new system for reviews...I now have a "reply" option to your lovely reviews, so I don't have to type it out here any longer.**

**Yugi: That should be a tad easier, Kitten. **

**Kitty: I just wish that the system wouldn't keep changing so much...oh well, it doesn't matter. Anyway, I won't be able to reply right this moment as I'm working with my friend Imogen to make a parody Christmas album for one of my forums with lyrics about the Marauders and Harry Potter, but I promise to answer your reviews as soon as I possibly can.**

**Diana: R&R!**


	9. Chapter 8: Discussions and Defeat

**Kitty: (looking miserable) How is it possible that my Christmas vacation was barely a vacation?**

**Yugi: Well, at least you and Emessa saw Wicked on Christmas Eve.**

**Kitty: AND THAT WAS TOTAL AWESOMENESS. (grins widely) We were so kewl there. I wore these. (shakes one of her ruby-slippered feet in sight of the audience) That alone makes me awesome. And Emessa was even more awesome. Hope she knows that, too.**

**Atem: If only she could stay in the East with you...there's nothing good about Nevada except for Las Vegas and her classy arts school. **

**Bakura: Yeah, Emessa should stay around here...she's one cool gal.  
**

**Kitty: You're only saying that 'cause she's a fan of you and Malik.**

**Bakura: (blushes) I AM NOT!**

**Lina and Diana: (looking a bit pissed) R&R!**

* * *

_**  
Chapter Eight:**_

_**Discussions and Defeat**_

The Gryffindors were all sent down to the Great Hall, and in a few minutes, the students from Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin arrived as well, looking very confused.

Dumbledore announced that the teachers were to conduct a thorough search of the castle and that the students would sleep in the Great Hall that night due to the security breach in the Gryffindor common room. The Head Boy (Percy) and Head Girl (Percy's Ravenclaw girlfriend) were left in charge.

The House tables were gone and the students were now tucking themselves into the sleeping bags that Dumbledore had left for them. The British kids, the Japanese duelists and Mokuba were now gathered together in a large group in the corner, and Yugi, Harry, Ron, Hermione and Diana had just finished explaining what had happened.

"Do you think Black's still in the castle?" asked Mokuba.

"I don't know _why_ he'd stay around," Diana stated, "I doubt he'd be _begging_ to be arrested again."

"But why else would Dumbledore-sensei ask the teachers to search the grounds?" inquired Marik.

"Well, for our safety, he aught to double-check, ne?" replied Yugi.

"It's lucky he picked tonight, if you think about it," Ryou remarked, "The one night when you guys _weren't_ in the tower…"

Ron shook his head. "It was lucky for _us_, not for _him_. I reckon he's lost track of time, being on the run. He didn't realize it was Halloween: otherwise he would've come bursting in here."

Hermione shuttered. "But how did he get in at all? I don't _understand_…"

"Maybe he Apparated in," suggested Mokuba, "Just appear out of thin air. I heard some Ravenclaw third years talking about it."

"Well, those Ravenclaws obviously don't deserve to be in our house, Mokuba-chan: their intellect isn't up to scratch," Seto snorted, "You can't just Apparate in here…there are all sorts of enchantments to prevent people from entering by stealth."

"Maybe he disguised himself," said Ryou, "After all, even the most _pathetic_ of disguises can mislead people."

"I'd like to see a disguise that can fool _dementors_," replied Hermione worriedly, "They see by feeling emotions, and having Black in their clutches for twelve years before, I doubt they wouldn't recognize him immediately."

"Maybe he flew in," proposed Marik, "It was an awfully cloudy night…it would've been hard to see him."

"But he would've had to dive underneath the clouds to see where he was and to descend in front of the school to enter," Harry pointed out, "The stealth enchantments still would've prevented him from entering and the dementors would've still seen him."

"There are some secret passages around the grounds that lead into the school, aren't there?" asked Yugi, "That's what the Weasley twins told me."

"Yeah, but Filch will have those covered for sure," muttered Diana.

"Lights out now!" snapped Percy suddenly, and their conversation ended.

Diana, however, did not go to sleep: she merely lay on her side quietly, thinking about what had just happened. Sirius Black getting into Hogwarts had shaken her a lot…After all, it had been hard for _Voldemort_ to get into the school: hell, he had to attach himself to the back of Quirrel's head just to get _close_ to the Stone! What kind of power could Black possibly have to get inside Hogwarts without getting caught?

It was then that the voice of Percy behind her interrupted her thoughts.

"Any sign of him, Professor?"

"No. Is all well here?" asked Dumbledore's voice.

"Everything's under control, sir," the Head Boy assured him.

"Good," replied Dumbledore. "I've found a temporary guardian for the Gryffindor portrait hole…everything will be fine by morning."

"And the Fat Lady, sir?"

"Hiding in a map of Argyllshire on the second floor. Once we've been able to calm her down a little, I'll have Mr. Filch restore her."

There were some footsteps, and then another voice joined the conversation.

"The search is complete, Headmaster," Snape reported, "Black is nowhere to be found."

"Thank you, Severus," said Dumbledore, "I didn't expect him to linger."

"Have you any theories as to how he got in, Headmaster?" inquired Snape.

"Many, each of them as unlikely as the next."

_/Dumbledore doesn't even know how he got in…/ _thought Diana,_ /Alright, we're screwed./_

"It seems _impossible_," Snape began, his voice now sounding quite angry, "That Black could have entered these grounds without _inside_ help. I _did_ express my concerns when you appointed-"

"I trust everyone inside this school without question," Dumbledore interrupted calmly yet firmly, "Now…I must go to the dementors: I said I would inform them of our progress…"

"Didn't you ask them if they wanted to _help_, sir?" Percy asked, "They could've helped us search the grounds faster, with all due respect."

"They _did_ want to help," Dumbledore answered dryly, "They said so after I first told them Black had entered. But no dementor will _ever_ set foot inside this school while _I'm_ Headmaster."

The conversation ended, and the three went their separate ways. Diana looked up absently, and when she did, she noticed Harry awake as well.

"_What was that all about?" _he mouthed.

* * *

Diana told the others about the discussion she had overheard at breakfast the next morning. Harry was at Quidditch practice: Diana figured that Wood had wanted to get some extra training in before the next match against Slytherin.

"Who do you think Snape suspected of helping Black in?" asked Mokuba.

"There are only two new appointments, so there are only two possibilities," Seto replied, "One, Hagrid…or two, Lupin."

"But Hagrid's loyal to Dumbledore above all else!" Hermione argued, "And I highly doubt Professor Lupin would help Black get in."

"Snape's not necessarily _right_, you know," Yugi pointed out, "He just _thinks_ someone's helping him."

"Snape wasn't wrong last time, though," stated Marik, "I mean…Quirrel turned out bad when Snape suspected him and we didn't."

"I trust Lupin," Diana replied in a tone firm enough to end the conversation.

Right then, Harry came in, looking irritated. "We're _not_ playing Slytherin!"

"_What_?" Hermione and Mokuba said together.

"Apparently Slytherin can't play because their Seeker's _arm_ is still injured," Harry explained heatedly, "We're playing Hufflepuff instead."

"The Slytherin team is full of bullshit," snapped Marik, "I should know."

"More likely they don't want to play in the bad weather coming around the time of the game," Diana muttered, eying the darkening clouds on the sky-imitating ceiling, "It might ruin their chances of winning…"

"It doesn't matter," sighed Yugi, "The Slytherin team has already said they won't play…even if we _could_ prove that Malfoy's arm isn't the reason for them not playing, the Slytherin team still won't be obligated to do so."

There was a frustrated silence.

"If it makes you feel any better, Harry-kun," Ryou spoke at last, "Cedric Diggory's the only good player on the Hufflepuff team, and Wood's a better Captain and you're a better Seeker than he is. I've seen him catching the Snitch, and you're _much_ faster. Now, if you'll excuse me…I need to go wash my mouth out for dissing my House's Quidditch team."

* * *

Yugi rushed to get to Defense Against the Dark Arts on time writing a long letter to Kitty and searching the Owlery for Kisara as to send it, pleading to Kami-sama that Lupin wouldn't be too mad with him for being late.

"Sorry I'm late, Lupin-sensei, I-"

Yugi had started to form an apology before he was all the way inside, but seeing who was behind the teacher's desk made him stop abruptly in the doorway. Behind the desk sat a teacher, but instead of Lupin, the teacher was none other than Severus Snape.

"This lesson started ten minutes ago, Mutou," Snape said coldly, "I think a ten point deduction should discipline your lack of punctuality. Sit down."

But Yugi didn't move. "Where's Lupin-sensei? Is he not well?"

"Just too ill to teach today," Snape replied curtly with a twisted smile, "Now sit _down_, Mutou. I don't know if the teachers in China are given respect by their students, but you should know by now that Hogwarts teachers are."

Yugi was tempted to say that Snape didn't deserve respect but decided against it. He merely corrected, "_Japan_," under his breath, before taking a seat next to Hermione.

Snape turned to the class and continued his lecture. "As I was saying before Mutou interrupted, Professor Lupin has not left any record of the topics you have covered so far-"

"Excuse me, sir," Hermione answered quickly, "We've done boggarts, Red Caps, kappas and grindylows, and we're just about to start-"

"Be _quiet_," Snape snapped, "I did not ask for _information_: I was merely commenting on Professor Lupin's lack of organization."

"He's the best Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher we've ever had," Diana said as cold as Snape, "And one of the best teachers in this school."

There was a murmur of agreement, and Marik nodded firmly next to her. Snape eyed Diana with a menacing look.

"You are _easily_ satisfied…Lupin is hardly overtaxing you: I would expect _first_ years to deal with Red Caps and grindylows. Today we shall discuss…" he flicked through their textbook to the very back chapter, "…_werewolves_."

_/Surely he knows we can't be that far yet/_ Diana thought to herself, _/Werewolves and Dark creatures aren't supposed to be discussed until at least fifth year! What's he doing?..._

"But sir," Hermione cut in, "We're not supposed to do werewolves yet, we're due to start hinkypunks-"

"Miss Granger, I was under the impression that _I_ am teaching this lesson, not _you_," Snape interrupted in a deathly calm way, "And I am telling you all to turn to page 394," there was a pause where some of the students exchanged glances, and Snape added, "All of you! _Now_!"

The class opened their books fearfully to the page asked for.

"Which of you can tell me how to distinguish a werewolf from a true wolf?" the Potions master inquired.

No one moved or spoke except for Hermione, who raised her hand to everything, and Diana, who had been the best Defense Against the Dark Arts student since Lupin first arrived.

Snape, almost determinedly ignoring Hermione, at last sighed and growled, "Very well…Randall?"

"There are five differences between a wolf and a werewolf," Diana answered, "A werewolf has a long, crooked snout and a tufted tail, as well as a mane that grows around its neck as it reaches adulthood. A werewolf also has larger paws with claws that don't retract like claws of a dog or a wolf, and they have more developed muscles that helps them bring down prey."

"Imitating Miss Granger and memorizing the _textbook_, I see, Randall," Snape responded coldly, and Malfoy sniggered, "But you are correct in essentials at least…unlike your _classmates_, who don't seem to have a _clue_."

"We've already _told_ you," Yugi interjected, "We haven't gotten as far as werewolves yet, we've only gotten to-"

"_Silence_!" snarled Snape, "Well, well, well…I never thought I'd meet a third year class that can't identify a werewolf when they see one. I shall have to inform Professor Dumbledore how very behind you all are…"

The lesson continued, with the exception that the students were no longer talking and were now copying notes from the textbooks mutely as Snape examined the work they had been doing with Lupin behind the large desk, muttering less-than-fair critiques just loud enough for them to hear.

When the bell finally rang, Snape held them back and gave them a essay on ways to recognize and kill werewolves, making most of the students groan at the thought it would have to cover two rolls of parchment. Diana, on the other hand, looked rather angry at the thought of killing a werewolf for a reason that none of her friends seemed to know: they did not ask, however, merely reminding themselves that she was a lot like Hagrid in the regard of a creature's well-being, no matter how dangerous it might be.

* * *

The next day was the Gryffindor-Hufflepuff Quidditch match: it was so cold and raining so hard Diana wondered if the players would freeze to their brooms. Fortunately Hermione had helped Harry out a bit by enchanting his glasses to repel water so that Harry could see clearly, but that wouldn't stop him getting soaked from head-to-toe with bucket and buckets of rainwater.

There was a clap of thunder, and Diana noticed Cedric Diggory racing a few feet behind Harry in one direction, before spotting a tiny speck of gold right in front of them.

Harry was going to get the Snitch…he was _way_ ahead of Cedric.

"GO, HARRY!" Diana shouted, "GO, HARRY, GO! YOU'RE ALMOST THERE! GO-"

Diana felt her voice fail her, not of excitement, but of something else. A rush of odd coldness washed over her. It felt like she could no longer speak. The crowd wasn't cheering either, as if they felt exactly as she did. But she couldn't hear the wind's harsh howl either…it was as if she had gone deaf.

Then, out of nowhere, a loud, high scream of terror sounded through her head, echoing in her ears…and she realized…

_The dementors were there._

"_Harry_," she said, tears streaming down her face as she struggled to access her vocal cords while still blocking out the screaming in her ears.

She vaguely heard Hermione's voice. _"Dare, are you alright?"_

Diana couldn't understand her…what was she saying? What nonsense she was speaking? There was no time for nonsense… Everything in her mind was clouded. She struggled to keep thinking, to keep working against the dementors' spell…scream…blood…Harry…fangs…voices…

Diana forced herself to look up. Her eyes squinted through the rain and clouds, and finally saw something falling down toward the ground…something that looked horribly like a body.

"_HAAAAAAARRRRRRRRY_!"

Her own cry seemed to last forever, echoing in her throbbing ears as swirling white mist consumed her, bringing her down, down, down…

* * *

"Dare-chan? _Dare-chan_! Wake up, Dare-chan!"

Diana's eyes flickered open at someone slapping her face. She blinked several times, and finally, the Hospital Wing ceiling and Bakura's face slowly came into focus.

"_Where_…what _happened_?" Diana whispered, still dazed.

"You passed out," Hermione said nearby, looking really worried, "I'm not surprised…the dementors were almost right next to the Gryffindor seating…even Atem here looked faint."

Hearing about the dementors shot Diana back to reality and made her remember the match. "_Harry_! _Where's_-?"

"He's here," Ron spoke from a bed next to Diana's, "Still unconscious."

The redhead sat up and, indeed, Harry was lying next to her, eyes closed.

"Is he alright?" she asked, "The fall was so _far_-"

"Dumbledore slowed him down and lowered him onto a stretcher to be brought here," replied Atem, "Harry's broom wasn't so lucky, though…it went straight into the Whomping Willow. It didn't have a chance."

Diana winced, thinking of Harry's Nimbus 2000 being pummeled by the Willow. "Poor Harry, he _loved_ that Nimbus…what about the game?"

"Diggory caught the Snitch just after Harry fell," sighed Bakura, "He didn't realize what happened. He wanted a rematch, but he won, fair and square."

"What a week," Diana muttered, "First Black, now Gryffindor's first lost Quidditch match in _forever_…Harry needs a real nice Christmas to make up for all of this crap he's had to deal with."

* * *

**Kitty: (hums "I'll Cover You" from RENT) Oh! End Chapter.**

**Yugi: I agree with Dare...Harry does deserve a nice Christmas.**

**Kitty: And he and Ryou will get one.**

**Ryou and Harry: (do a little dance)**

**Kitty: And then the conflict will come back.**

**Harry: (pouts) Damn it.**

**Kitty: (pats Harry's head as if he were a dog) Now, now, Harry...people like emo boys.**

**Harry: I'M NOT EMO!**

**Kitty: Uh...yeah, you are. (picks up Order of the Phoenix and turns to a particular page of whining and ranting) See? Right there...emo.**

**Harry: (scans the page, and then glares at Kitty) I hate you.**

**Kitty: (grins) I know. (ahem) Now...I have noticed that I cannot reply anonymus reviews, so if you do not have an account here and you review, PLEASE enclose your email address so I may reply to you. And if you are one of the people who sent me a review that I did not answer, please tell me and I promise to answer the next review you send. I responded to some people, I believe, but then the holidays came aorund, and I lost track of who I replied to. I'll try not to do that again in the future, but thanks for your patience and understanding. Much love, peoples.**

**Seto: R&R! **


	10. Chapter 9: The Secret of Sirius Black

**Atem: (raises an eyebrow) An update? Already?**

**Kitty: Well, this one I've been looking forward to!**

**Yugi: So I suppose we learn a secret or a part of one, I presume?**

**Kitty: Good guess!**

**Lina: What kind of secret?**

**Kitty: Look at the title.**

**(pause)**

**Lina: Is it about Sirius?**

**Kitty: How ever did you guess? **

**Hermione: (rolls her eyes) R&R!**

**

* * *

**

**_ Chapter Nine:_**_****_

_**The Secret of Sirius Black**_

Poor Harry was kept in the Hospital Wing for the next three days, and while he didn't complain about being kept there or about losing the game, Diana knew that Gryffindor's defeat had hit him hard. For the first time in his time as Seeker, he lost a match. The rest of the Quidditch team tried to make him feel better, telling him that everyone loses sometime, but it didn't help much. Why would it? Knowing that everyone loses sometimes doesn't give you another chance to win what you've lost.

Diana had been skipping classes a lot to visit Harry, much to the displeasure of Hermione, who told her that she needed to focus on her lessons. Right then, however, Diana thought keeping Harry company was more important.

When Harry was let out of the Hospital Wing, the Gryffindors and Slytherins were lucky enough to have Defense Against the Dark Arts for their first lesson, and to the Brits', Yugi's and Marik's enormous relief, Lupin was back at work, looking quite ill indeed, but still cheerful.

"Hey, Professor!" greeted Diana, "Nice to see you back!"

"It's nice to be back," Lupin smiled at her, "I'm sure all of you-"

"Professor, do we still have to do that essay Professor Snape gave us?" Parvati Patil cut in.

"Essay?" Lupin repeated, blinking in surprise, "What essay?"

That was all the class needed to hear to start into a long list of complaints.

"It's not fair, he was only filling in, why should he give us homework?"

"We don't know a _thing_ about werewolves-"

"-two rolls of parchment!"

"Did you tell Professor Snape we haven't covered them yet?" Lupin asked, frowning slightly.

The students' babble started again.

"Yes, but he said we were really behind-"

"-he wouldn't listen-"

"-_two rolls of parchment_!"

Lupin made a hand gesture to silence the class. "Don't worry. I'll speak to Professor Snape. You don't have to do the essay."

"Oh _no_," Hermione whined in disappointment, "I've already _finished_ it!"

* * *

Later that day, Diana and the rest of her friends learned that Harry had asked Lupin about ways to prevent the dementors from affecting him, and that Lupin had finally agreed to give him some anti-dementor lessons after the holidays were over. Diana was very pleased to hear this, and it gave her yet another reason to respect the Defense Against the Dark Art teacher: no other teacher had ever offered to do something like this for Harry before.

Harry's mood also brightened a bit when Ravenclaw beat Hufflepuff. All Gryffindor had to do was defeat Ravenclaw and Slytherin to win, and if Lupin's lessons helped him with the dementors, then he couldn't possibly lose again.

Then the last trip for Hogsmeade before Christmas came around, and both Harry and Ryou felt their holiday cheer decrease significantly.

Diana gave each Harry and Ryou a big hug, promising them to bring back a lot of stuff for them, before following Seto, Yugi, Marik, Hermione and Ron out the door into the frosty grounds to head into Hogsmeade.

* * *

While her friends took a look at the sweets in Honeydukes, Diana sat alone in the Three Broomsticks, thinking of everything that she'd been trying not to think about. The most notable of those things was Bakura and Artemis. Just looking at Ryou and giving him a hug of farewell had been enough to make her remember the day Roth told her that her best friend had loved her almost-Yami. She half wanted to ask Bakura what had happened between them, but the other half was afraid that he still loved her…she could never look at the Tomb Robber the same way again if he did.

"Wow…a lot of thinking going on here."

Diana's head shot up to see Seth smiling down at her.

"Seth? What are _you_ doing here? I thought you were with the others."

"Curious as to why you weren't hanging out with us," the High Priest replied, "And Marik said something about you only being this absent around the time you guys came back from Egypt. Something bothering you?"

Diana studied Seth for a moment: he _did_ have the most memory of Ancient Egypt, she reasoned. Maybe _he_ could tell her something…

"Seth…do you know anything about Artemis…back in Egypt?"

Seth blinked as he sat down next to her. "Why so curious?"

"Well…I've heard that Bakura had a connection with her," Diana chose her words carefully, "I…I just want to know what happened between them."

Seth's eyes filled with understanding. "I see…well, I don't know _much_ about Bakura's and Dark Artemis's connection, but most historical accounts _do_ agree that there _was_ a connection between them, mostly because the King of Thieves had a companion named Artemis who vanished right before Dark Artemis became a threat. I reckon the only person who might be able to answer your questions would be Bakura himself."

Diana frowned. "I was afraid you'd say that. But what if Bakura doesn't remember?"

Seth sighed. "Bakura…remembers much more than he lets on, Dare-kun."

"But he doesn't even remember what his worst memory is about," Diana pointed out, "That thing that the dementor showed him on the train…the burning town."

Seth looked down at the floor thoughtfully. "I'm not sure about that…I can only _theorize_ how Bakura's mind works. His memory wasn't wiped like Atem's was…all I can guess is that Bakura blocked some significant memories out…likely ones he didn't _want_ to remember…but I'd bet anything that those memories aren't blocked too well, hence the reason why he saw that town burning when the dementor came into our compartment."

Seth looked again at Diana. "But even Atem's memory was unlocked slightly when he was reunited with me. I bet Bakura remembered Artemis as soon as he saw you…you _do_ look a lot like the old Artemis."

"But what if he doesn't remember the whole story?" asked Diana, "That town…he said it seemed _important_ to him."

"If you are _really_ so determined to learn the secret of that town," Seth told her, "Then I suggest you ask Bakura to tell you about Kul Elna."

"Kul Elna?" Diana repeated, "But what's-?"

"Hey, Dare! Seth!"

Diana and the High Priest turned to see Ron, Hermione, Yugi and Marik, accompanied by two other students…two others that should've been alone at school together instead of in the middle of Hogsmeade.

"_Harry_! _Ryou_! What the hell are you guys _doing_ here?" Diana inquired as the friends sat down together around the table.

Harry pulled something out of his pocket, which turned out to be a worn, ragged and blank piece of parchment.

"Fred and George gave this to me," he told them, "To help Ryou and me get into Hogsmeade."

Diana raised an eyebrow. "An old piece of parchment? This is the most sour joke those two have ever performed."

"No, no, look at this," Harry protested as he pulled out his wand and tapped the parchment, "_I solemnly swear I'm up to no good_."

At once, to Diana's shock, thin lines began to spread over the parchment from the point Harry's wand had touched, joining and crisscrossing to create a map of the Hogwarts grounds, with little dots showing the action of people walking around it, and a strange heading that read:

**_Messrs. Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs,  
Purveyors of Aids to Magical Mischief-Makers,  
And Misses Trickster, Clawpaw and Nightwing,  
Loyal Spies to the Marauders and their Disciples,  
Are proud to present_****  
THE MARAUDER'S MAP**

"Nice nicknames," noted Seth, "Who helped Fred and George make it?"

"They didn't make it," explained Ryou, "They stole it from Filch's confiscation drawer in their first year. They only gave it to Harry-kun because they know it by heart…they thought we could just use a secret passage to get into Honeydukes…not even Filch knows about it. I bet only the Marauders, the Spies, the Weasley twins and us know about it."

"So Fred and George don't even _know_ who these people _are_?" asked Hermione, looking worried.

"No, they don't," answered Ryou, catching Hermione's look, "But they've used it for years without anything happening, so I doubt it's dangerous-"

It was then that Diana pulled Ryou and Harry underneath the table with her. Professor Flitwick and McGonagall had just entered the pub, and were followed shortly by Hagrid and the Minister of Magic.

Diana heard Hermione whisper, "_Mobiliarbus_!" above her and saw the large Christmas tree rise a few inches off the ground, drift sideways and land again with a soft _thump_ to hide them from view. She saw the teachers', gamekeeper's and minister's feet gather around a table and sit down, before the feet of Madame Rosmerta, owner and barmaid of the Three Broomsticks, wearing sparkly turquoise high-heels walked over to their table.

"A small gillywater…"

"Mine," McGonagall's voice spoke.

"Four pints of mulled mead…"

"Ta, Rosmerta," said Hagrid.

"A cherry syrup and soda with ice and umbrella…"

Flitwick smacked his lips.

"So you'll be the red current rum, Minster."

"Thank you, Rosmerta," answered Fudge, "Lovely to see you again. Have one yourself, won't you?"

"Well, thank you, Minster, I _have_ been meaning to have a word with you…these dementors you sent _are_ scaring off a lot of my customers…are you _sure_ they're necessary to catch Sirius Black?"

"They are," Fudge said grimly, "After he showed up at the school, there's no doubt of it. If only Dumbledore would've allowed them to search the school…then they might've found him."

"Dementors are _horrible_ things," McGonagall remarked sharply, "They should be _nowhere_ near the _students_…what happened with Mr. Potter at the most recent Quidditch match was proof enough."

Harry twitched next to Diana, and the redhead took his hand to calm him.

"But they _are_ necessary," demurred Fudge, "They're here to protect us all from Black…we _all_ know what Black is capable of."

"I still have trouble believing it sometimes," Rosmerta commented thoughtfully, "I mean, I remember Sirius Black as a _boy_ at Hogwarts…he was one of the _last_ people I thought would go bad."

"You don't know the _half_ of it," Fudge sighed, "The worst of what he did isn't even known by most…certainly there's the thirteen Muggles he murdered…but that was merely an epilogue of his real crime."

"You said you remember him at school, Rosmerta," murmured McGonagall, "I dare say you remember who his best friend was?"

"Naturally," laughed Rosmerta, "Never saw one without the other, did you? Ooh, they used to make me _laugh_…quite the double act, Sirius Black and James Potter!"

Diana's mouth dropped. Harry gasped, and Ron kicked him to tell him to be quiet.

"Precisely," McGonagall concurred, "Black and Potter, leaders of their little gang. Both very bright, of course…_exceptionally_ bright, in fact. The only other person in their grade that could rival their brightness was Carly Randall…I dare say you remember her as well, Rosmerta?"

"Of course," Rosmerta granted, "She was a very kind young lady, Carly. I remember all the fights she used to get into with Black and Potter…great friends, those three were, but when they got her mad, they were in real trouble. It's really too bad…Carly could've gone so much farther than she did if she and Black weren't stuck together."

"Yes," Fudge agreed, "I've never heard of a marriage that ended worse…"

Diana's eyes widened in horror, and her face went white. _Marriage_…?

"Carly has a daughter, doesn't she?" asked Rosmerta.

"Diana," replied Hagrid, "Called Dare by her friends an' meh. Ya never see her without Harry…those two are so much like Carly and James you'd think they were cloned from 'em."

"If only they could've been warned of You-Know-Who coming after them," Rosmerta whispered.

"Carly, James and Lily _did_ know that You-Know-Who was after them," said Fudge, "Most people don't know this, but Dumbledore had learned from one of his spies looking in on the Death Eaters that You-Know-who was after the Potters and Carly. So James and Lily employed the use of the Fidelius Charm to hide from You-Know-Who."

"It works by concealing a magical secret inside a single, living soul called a Secret Keeper," clarified Flitwick, "Once the magical secret is concealed, it is impossible to learn it unless the Secret Keeper chooses to divulge it. As long as the Secret Keeper is silent, there would be no way to find the people the Secret Keeper is hiding."

"Black, naturally, was the Potters' Secret Keeper," said Fudge, "As for Carly, we have reason to believe _she_ had a Secret Keeper as well, who also betrayed her. As her husband, it's only _natural_ she chose Black…that, and they had been good friends at school. The Potters and Carly chose the same Secret Keeper, unknowns to them, and it was a big mistake."

"Because Black betrayed them?" breathed Rosmerta.

"He did indeed. Black was tired of his double-agent role and was ready to declare his support openly for You-Know-Who after the Potters and Carly were dead. But after You-Know-Who met his downfall in little Harry Potter, Black fled. He had no choice…his master had fallen as soon as he had shown his true colors as a traitor."

"But the Ministry still caught him the next day," pointed out Rosmerta.

"Alas, if only we had gotten to him first," Fudge muttered bitterly, "It was Peter Pettigrew who found him…he was another of the Potters' friends. Maddened by grief, no doubt, and knowing that Black had been James and Lily's Secret Keeper, he went after Black himself."

"_Pettigrew_…" Rosmerta sounded like she was thinking, "That fat little boy who was always tagging around after them at school?"

"Hero-worshipped Black and Potter," assented McGonagall, "Never quite in their or Carly's league, though, although I remember that Carly used to always help him when he was having trouble. I wouldn't be surprised if Pettigrew had suspected Black of also betraying Carly when he went after him: Carly was like a big sister to him, always standing up for him…if only she could've seen him stand up for himself…for the first time in his life…" she sounded as thought she had a sudden head cold.

"There, now, Minerva," Fudge said kindly, "Pettigrew died a hero's death…I'm sure Carly and James would've been very proud of him. Eyewitnesses…Muggles, of course, we had to wipe their memories later…told us how Pettigrew had cornered Black, sobbing, _'Your friends, Sirius, your wife! How could you?'_ Then he went for his wand, but Black was quicker…blew him to smithereens…no one would've stood a chance against Black except for Hit Wizards from the Magical Enforcement Squad, but Pettigrew didn't care. We gave him the Order of Merlin, First Class, and I _think_ that gave some comfort to his poor mother…then we captured Black and brought him to Azkaban."

There was a small clink of glass on wood: someone had set down their glass.

"You know, Cornelius, if you're dining with the Headmaster, we'd better head up to the school," prompted McGonagall.

"Yes, yes, you're quite right," replied Fudge, as the four sets of feet started move away from the table and to the door, "It was nice seeing you, Rosmerta."

There was a sound of the door opening, and the teachers disappeared in a flurry of snow.

"Harry? Dare?"

The others looked under the table at Ryou, Harry and Diana, looking stunned. The Boy Who Lived had his mouth open and looked lost for words: Artemis's Heir's face was paler than they'd ever seen it and her normally almond-shaped blue eyes were a bright red.

* * *

**Lina: (eyes wide) Whoa.**

**Yugi: (looks at Kitty) Sirius...?**

**Kitty: Shocking, eh? You haven't heard anything yet.**

**Atem: Will Dare talk to Bakura?**

**Kitty: Maybe. **

**Bakura: That means yes to the rest of us.**

**Kitty: Maybe.**

**Bakura: (sweatdrop) I hate you.**

**Emessa: (pops out of nowhere) Don't go hating my big sister! She's awesome. She wears the black hat.**

**Bakura: And you wear the striped tights. Much hotter during sex.**

**Lina: (eyes turn to flames) EXCUSE me?**

**Bakura: (face goes white) Oh, fuck. (runs for his life) AHHHHHHHHHHHH!**

**Yugi: (sweatdrop) Why can't anything around here remain sane? **

**Kitty: Because no one here is sane to begin with.**

**Yugi: Good point.**

**Diana: R&R! **


	11. Chapter 10: The Present from No One

**Kitty: Slightly longer chappie than usual.**

**Yugi: For your Martin Luther King, Jr., Day.**

**Kitty: And hopefully that means that you get a day off for it. We all could use a day off.**

**Lina: Especially with you having exams all this week.**

**Kitty: Indeed. That math exam was enough torture...now I have three more to do. (sighs)**

**Atem: (gives Kitty a hug) R&R!**

**

* * *

**

**_ Chapter Ten:_**

**_The Present from No One_**

The next morning, Diana woke with a start. She had dreamed of nothing but the conversation she had overheard in the Three Broomsticks all night.

As soon as she had gotten back to her dormitory, Diana had reached around under her bed to find her photo album. This album was the only thing that helped her remember her mother. All of the pictures were of Carly Randall, although many of those pictures were ripped specifically to hide other people in the picture. The most significant one was at the front of the album. It, like the others, was ripped to hide someone, but it was the single best shot of Carly Randall Diana had: a shot of her playing in the snow, smiling and laughing in her ripped-away playmate's direction.

That photo had stayed with her as Fudge's and the teachers' words echoed in her head that night and, this morning, Diana decided to go to another source.

Diana crept into the boys' dormitory and around the still-sleeping Harry, and pulled the picture he had of his parents' wedding off his bedside table.

There, next to Harry's father…that must've been him. No one else could've been James Potter's best man. He was laughing and handsome…not at all like the waxen, skeletal criminal Diana knew from the Daily Prophet.

It was hard to believe that this man had once been Sirius Black. Could he really have been the same person who killed Harry's parents and her mother? Did he know of everything he was going to do to the people next to him? Was he part of the Death Eaters then? 

Diana glared down at the handsome face, her eyes flashing a livid red. _'I knew you left my mother to die…but I never imagined that you helped Voldemort kill her…Sirius Black…now I make a vow…one that, unlike yours to my mother, will never die. I vow to make you suffer just as much as Harry and I have at your hands.'

* * *

_

"Dare-kun, are you alright?"

Diana was indeed much paler than usual when she came into the Great Hall: she almost looked like a walking skeleton.

She sat down next to Seth with a mute shake of her head, putting a piece of parchment on the table. "I copied this from the library…"

Marik took it, and his lavender eyes widened more and more as he read each line. "Diana Artemis…_Black_?"

"A Daily Prophet article announcing my birth," Diana assented, "My name, according to records, was later changed to Randall after Black was captured. Everything we heard was true. Sirius Black is my father."

There was a silence. Then Hermione wrapped her arm around Diana.

"Dare, we don't care who your parents were," she assured, "You know that."

"That's not the problem," Diana muttered, pulling away from Hermione, "I just can't believe that my father helped murder Harry's parents."

"It's not your fault, Dare," Harry replied, a little more bluntly than usual, "The only person _I_ want to go after is _Black_."

"You're not going after _anyone_, Harry-kun," chastised Atem, "It's too dangerous…the dementors are here to capture Black, and he'll be brought back to Azkaban. If _anyone_ deserves that place, it's _him_."

"Dementors don't affect him the same way!" Harry growled, "He escaped from them before! He _can't_ be punished for what he's done in Azkaban!"

"So what do you want to do, kill him _yourself_?" asked Ron sharply.

"Of _course_ not!" Hermione answered for Harry, looking panicked, "Harry doesn't want to kill _anyone_, do you, Harry?"

Harry was silent for a moment. Then he said in a very quiet voice, "Do you know what I hear when the dementors get close to me?"

Atem and Seth exchanged a look, and the group shook their heads.

"I hear my mum pleading with Voldemort to spare my life," Harry murmured, "Do you have _any_ idea what that's _like_? Do you have _any_ idea what it's like to have nothing but the memory of a scared voice all thanks to someone who pretended to be your parents' friend? Were it not for Sirius Black, then my parents would be alive today. I want him to feel the exact same pain he has thrown on me…yes, by killing him if I must."

There was another pause, after which Diana said, "I agree with Harry."

"_Dare_!" said Hermione worriedly.

"I do," Diana challenged Hermione's concern with cold fury, "Black helped Voldemort kill my mother…he _does_ deserve to suffer. I wish he _knew_ what I have to _deal_ with every month. I wish I could _show_ him, really…now I know someone who actually _deserves_ to be killed by Artemis-"

"You're _mad_,both of you!" interrupted Marik, "We _all_ are angry with him for what he's done…what he did to your parents and Pettigrew was _horrible_, but even so, the dementors are here to handle this."

"Your parents wouldn't have wanted you to go after Black," Bakura said sternly, mostly to Diana, "If you go after him, you'll be killed…they gave their _lives_ to let you live, are you _really_ going to throw away their blessing to you just because you feel like you have to do everything yourself? If you go and kill Black, you'll be just as much of a murderer as Dark Artemis was, and I _know_ you don't want _that_!"

Diana stood up and her eyes flashed red in Bakura's direction.

"_Never_," she hissed, "Compare me to her. You have _no_ _right_ to lecture me about wanting to kill someone when you've killed many more in _your_ life! But you never talk about _that_! No, you _never_ talk about all the deaths _you've_ caused! Unless, of course, you're talking about what you _don't_ _remember_!"

"That's _not_ my fault and you know it!" Bakura snapped, standing up as well.

"Do I?" Diana demanded coldly, "Do I really know _anything_ about you?"

"What are you _saying_?" Bakura asked, looking partly angry and partly hurt.

"I'm _saying_ that you've hidden things from me that I would've liked to know from _you_, _instead_ of from Kara's older brother!" shouted Diana, "Me like Artemis…that'd be what you'd _want_, isn't it? YEAH, YOU'D JUST _LOVE_ TO HAVE YOUR OLD LOVER BACK!"

With that, Diana ran out of the Great Hall.

The others stared in astonishment. Diana and Bakura never fought about _anything_: they usually were as thick as thieves, if you'll excuse the pun.

"You better go after her, Tomb Robber," Seth said seriously, "I have a feeling only you can clear this up."

Bakura looked at the High Priest confusedly, before nodding and following Diana out the large doors.

* * *

"_Dare-chan_!"

Diana turned around to see Bakura running after her. She stopped, looking coldly with her red-glowing eyes.

"What?" she asked.

The Thief stopped when he had caught up with her. "Dare-chan…I didn't _mean_ to hurt your feelings…I was just trying to talk you out of going after Black, I didn't want to…"

He couldn't think of an ending to his apology, but Diana's features had softened and her eyes had lost their red shine, so he knew it was alright.

"I'm…I'm sorry, too," she murmured, "I was just really on-edge…I was just angry…I'm sorry."

The redhead paused: then she added, "Bakura…I talked to Seth to try and learn about you and Artemis…but all he said was that the best thing to ask you about was Kul Elna…what's Kul Elna? Is it some kind of spell?"

Bakura bowed his head, causing his white bangs to hide his eyes from view. Diana immediately wondered if she'd gone too far.

"Kul Elna…" he whispered at last, "Was my village."

Diana's eyes widened, remembering the burning village he had seen after the dementor came into their train compartment. "…_What_?"

Bakura sighed. "A group of murderous wanderers had invaded Egypt, and if the Egyptians did not use the magic of the Shadow Realm, destruction was imminent. Priest Seito's father, Aknadin, told his older brother, Atem's father, that he could harness that magic by making seven Millennium Items. Pharaoh Aknamkanon agreed, but he hadn't known that the Items weren't forged of gold, but of 1000 living, human sacrifices. My village was made up of exactly 1000 thieves according to records, so Aknadin thought it'd be the perfect place. There would be no survivors to tell of what happened, and all of them were supposedly evil. But there was something Aknadin didn't know: my village _wasn't_ made up of 1000 people…" Bakura looked up at Diana with expressionless eyes, "…it was made up of 1001."

Diana gasped. "_You_."

Bakura smiled grimly. "I was the only survivor. Even since then, I was on my own and determined to make the Pharaoh pay for my village's sacrifice. Aknamkanon said he had done it, you see, when he learned of what happened…the guards who killed my people was under his rule, and as such, he took responsibility for their actions. So I set out to become the greatest Tomb Robber in all Egypt, and then to kill the Pharaoh to avenge my village. On my way of amassing followers, I met Artemis. She and I became very good friends, mostly due to the fact that she shared my hatred for the Pharaoh. Her father was a vampire and her mother a human, so they were shunned from both sides. Even so, her father never _hurt_ anyone…in fact he lived far out in the desert as to never kill a human. He only sucked blood from cattle and taught Artemis to do the same. But Egypt was very afraid of half-breeds back then, so the Pharaoh's guard was sent out to kill all vampires they could find. Only Artemis escaped."

"But what made you two break up if you guys were so close?" asked Diana.

"If there was one thing Artemis and I could never agree on," Bakura explained, "It was how to destroy the Pharaoh. I wished to destroy him in a duel, as is custom in Egypt, but Artemis wanted to destroy him with armies and magic. Finally she left my group of thieves, saying she would find a special mentor in Nubia who could supposedly give her the power she craved. As her companion, I accompanied her. But that day…was nothing less than a disaster. The mentor told Artemis that she would have to give her heart and soul to him in order to defeat the Pharaoh: of course, Artemis didn't take him seriously. But the so-called _'mentor' _had actually _meant_ it. He planned to steal her heart and soul and make her a mind-slave to help create an army to take over the world. He stole her heart, and I was powerless to stop him…but as soon as her heart was his, Artemis's vampire magic kicked in to protect her, slamming the man headfirst against the wall and killing him instantly. I rushed over to help her…only to see that she looked different. Her eyes were gold, her skin was an odd blue and her black hair was white…most of all, though, her fangs were out, as if she was ready to feed. You see, Dare-chan, when the magician took away Artemis's heart, it left her with no feelings except for anger and lust, so she could no longer feel love or kindness, and not being able to feel those feelings, they had to be replaced by what was left. Everything she loved she now wished to destroy."

"Including you," Diana realized.

Bakura nodded sadly. "I grabbed my horse and galloped away to rejoin my band of thieves, leaving Artemis behind…I never saw her again."

Diana could feel nothing in her except for pity and sadness. Bakura had _loved_ Artemis, and now, she was a destructive, cruel, vampire-like creature that could never love anything again. It was no wonder Bakura had run to Diana so quickly: in her, he found something to replace the ache in his heart.

"Bakura," Diana whispered tentatively, "Do you still…love Artemis?"

Bakura was quiet for a moment, before replying, "No. I loved her…when she was _human_. I could _never_ love her for what she is today, no matter how much I once loved her. All I could love about Artemis is now gone…I have put her memory behind me."

Diana gave her friend a hug, partly of relief and partly to comfort him.

"I'm just glad I have _you_, Dare-chan," Bakura whispered so quietly Diana never heard him, "If I lost you like I did Artemis, I don't know what I'd do."

* * *

On Christmas day, Diana was not thinking about happy songs and gifts: thanks to a letter she had received the other day from Hagrid, she knew that there were more important things. The Committee for the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures had demanded a hearing for Buckbeak's attack on Malfoy, and if Hagrid lost, then Buckbeak would be executed.

So when she came into the boys' dorm that morning with Hermione, she was quite surprised to see Yugi, Ron and Harry roaring with laughter.

"What on earth are you dorks laughing about?" Diana asked, before she saw what made the boys so happy.

On Harry's was a brand-new broomstick: not just any broomstick, but the internationally standard, very pricey Firebolt.

"_Don't bring that cat in here_!" Ron snapped at the sight of Crookshanks in Hermione's arms, but neither Diana nor Hermione was paying attention.

"_Harry, who sent you_ _that_?" Diana demanded, both jealous and delighted.

"No idea," Harry replied, still grinning, "There wasn't a card or anything."

"You've got a guardian _angel_ or something, Harry!" Diana squealed, giving Harry a noogie, "You'll _never_ lose another game _again_ with this baby!"

The boys laughed at Diana's enthusiasm. Hermione, however, didn't look nearly so happy as Crookshanks jumped out of her arms and onto Ron's bed.

"But who'd spend so much on Harry and leave no card?" she asked.

"Who _cares_?" laughed Yugi, "Hey, Harry, why don't you take it for a ride this morning? No one will be using the Quidditch field during the holidays-"

"I don't think _anyone_ should ride that broom yet!" Hermione cut in shrilly.

Yugi, Harry, Ron and Diana stared at her.

"What do you _think_ Harry's going to do with it, Mione," asked Ron in disgust, "Sweep the _floor_?"

Hermione didn't get to answer, for Crookshanks had pounced on Ron's pajama top to get at Scabbers, who had been hiding in Ron's pocket. A chase of cat and rat and a fight between Hermione and Ron broke out, and it only ended when Diana levitated Scabbers into Ron's open drawer and out of Crookshanks's reach.

"C'mon," Diana grumbled, "Let's go get some breakfast."

* * *

It was quite sad that there were so little people staying over Christmas break: the majority of those who stayed were the four Brits and the five Japanese boys. Still, the feast was delicious, and different-colored noisemakers helped keep all the students and most of the teachers content. Diana was disappointed not to see Lupin at the teachers' table, as she had bought a present for him as well. Ron called her a teacher's pet, but Diana protested that Lupin likely didn't get many presents at Christmas, as he didn't seem to have any family. After all, she said, if he had family, wouldn't he have had pictures of a wife or children on his desk?

Yugi, Harry, Ron and Diana trotted back up to the common room afterwards (Hermione had stayed behind to speak with McGonagall), talking cheerfully, even when they had to go past the portrait of a slightly drunk and very stupid Sir Cadogan. Harry went upstairs to fetch his Firebolt so that he could polish it while his friends opened their other presents.

"_Ah_," Yugi sighed, "So _awesome_…this was the best Christmas feast _yet_!"

"_Nah_," contended Ron, "First year's was best…but this was pretty close."

Harry came back downstairs from the boys' dormitory, his Firebolt and Broomstick Servicing kit in hand and sat down next to the other three, just as Hermione entered, immediately plopping into the nearest chair and hiding behind the closest book she could grab. A second later, McGonagall entered, and Diana looked up worriedly. The last time their Head of House had been in their common room, it had been to announce that Ginny and Marik were taken into the Chamber of Secrets, so Diana couldn't help but get the impression that something was wrong.

"Miss Granger has just informed me that you have been sent a broomstick, Potter," the Transfiguration professor said in a business-like tone.

Diana, Yugi and Ron turned to look at Hermione, and they saw her forehead reddening over the top of her upside-down book.

McGonagall took the broom out of the bewildered Harry's hands and examined it beadily. "_Hmm_…and there was no note at _all_, Potter?"

"No," Harry replied blankly.

"I see…" muttered McGonagall, "Well, I'm afraid I'll have to confiscate this, Potter. It'll need to be check for jinxes…I'm no expert, but I daresay Madame Hooch and Professor Flitwick will strip it down…" Diana's and Ron's faces went white with horror, "It shouldn't take more than a few weeks: you'll have it back when we know it's jinx-free."

"B-but there's nothing wrong with it!" Harry pleaded, "H-honestly, Professor-"

"You can't _know_ that, Potter," McGonagall told him, sounding a little bit kinder, "Until you're _flown_ it, and that is out of the question until _we_ know it had not been tampered with."

The professor turned on her heel and left through the portrait hole with the Firebolt. Harry stared after her, stunned, as if he had just been told that Lord Voldemort was actually his father.

Ron turned on Hermione. "_What'd you go running to McGonagall for_?"

Hermione threw her book aside, very pink-faced, but defiant. "Because I think…and Professor McGonagall agrees with me…that that broomstick was sent to Harry by Sirius Black!"

* * *

**Yugi: Again with the DUN DUN DUN!**

**Harry: (cries because his Firebolt was taken away)**

**Kitty: (eyes Harry) And again with the emo.**

**Harry: (while tears are streaming down his face) I AM NOT EMO!**

**Kitty: Riiiiiiight. (ahem) Anyway... (peace) R&R!**


	12. Chapter 11: For the Best

**Kitty: (in bed, under the covers and snoring)**

**Yugi: Kitten.**

**Kitty: (still asleep)**

**Yugi: Kitten...wake up, honey.**

**Kitty: (still asleep)**

**Lina: KITTY, ATEM'S DYING HIS HAIR PINK!**

**Kitty: (jerks awake) W-WHA? What happened? What about Atem? EVIL PINK!  
**

**Lina: (vein throbbing in her temple) Kitty, do you have ANY idea how long it's been since you've posted a chapter?**

**Kitty: (blinks) Uh...a week?**

**Lina: Try close to two months.**

**Kitty: WHAAAAAAAT? (jumps in front of the computer and immediately goes to OH SHIT! You're right! **

**Yugi: Well...now that we've finally broken the Sleeping Beauty spell on you, maybe you can update.**

**Kitty: Will do! (types a chapter in two seconds and then posts it in one)**

**Lina: (blinks) Uh...are you sure that chapter is your best?**

**Kitty: Yes...well, it doesn't have major mistakes or anything...but it's not, like, a major turning point either.**

**Atem: (his hair NOT dyed pink, thank goodness) R&R, peeps!

* * *

**

_**Chapter Eleven:**_

_**For the Best**_

Even though Diana knew Hermione had meant well, she still couldn't help but agree with Harry that Sirius Black sending the Firebolt was quite unlikely. There were way too many people on their guard for Black to just waltz into a store and buy such an expensive broom. Yet Diana couldn't be angry with Hermione: she was only trying to be a good friend, and the redhead could think of other things to worry about besides the Firebolt. After all, McGonagall wanted Gryffindor to win just as much as the Gryffindor team did, so she likely wouldn't let Flitwick and Madame Hooch obliterate Harry's new broom.

Obviously feeling different than Diana, both Harry and Ron weren't talking to Hermione much, and Artemis's Heir disliked being in the middle. Whenever she tried to make compromise between them, they got mad with her as well, so she gave up and decided to let them apologize to each other on their own. That didn't mean that the Japanese boys didn't try: Seto and Ryou were visiting the library a lot more lately to study and chat with Hermione, who had been taking refuge there to avoid Ron and Harry.

The second day after term started again, the Gryffindors and Slytherins had Defense Against the Dark Arts again, and Diana was happy to see that Lupin was back and teaching.

After class, she packed her things up slowly, as to talk to him after everyone had left. Harry had done the same to remind Lupin about his anti-dementor lessons, and after he had left, Diana uneasily approached the teacher's desk.

"Um…Professor?"

Lupin looked up from some papers on his desk. "Yes? What is it?"

Diana bit her lip, not looking at him as she took a wrapped gift from her bag.

"I didn't see you at the Christmas feast, so I couldn't give this to you," she explained, "I just…noticed you didn't have any pictures of family and stuff on your desk…I thought maybe you didn't get presents much."

Lupin looked surprised, but he took the present all the same and smiled at her. "Thank you, Diana. That was very kind of you."

Diana forced a smile. "It was nothing, really. I'll see you later, Professor."

And she ran out of the classroom to catch up with her friends. Lupin looked down at the present, and unwrapped it.

It was a dark blue scarf decorated with tiny, gold and silver stars and the moon's phases on the ends.

Little did Lupin know that it wasn't just out of kindness that Diana had given him a gift…Diana's gesture had also been to examine some of the items on his desk.

Artemis's Heir hated manipulating Lupin, as she greatly respected him and disliked using kindness to suit ends as it was, but in this case, she decided that it was for the best. With her trick, she had learned what she had wanted to know, by reading two important sentences on a letter sent to Lupin from the Ministry of Magic.

_**Don't tell her anything. I realize that you were friends with Black at school, but you can't tell Miss Randall or Mr. Potter anything.**

* * *

_

Ravenclaw played Slytherin a week after the start of term, and Slytherin had barely won and gotten into first place toward the Quidditch Cup. Although Harry was happy to hear this, as Gryffindor would be in second if they beat Ravenclaw too, Diana couldn't worry herself with Quidditch. In fact, she had barely been focusing on anything except learning about her parents.

It wasn't surprising that Diana's friends were a bit concerned for her. They only saw her in one class a day usually, and she could use the remainder of her time looking through her photo album and different yearbooks she'd gotten out of the library for one small hint of her mother's relationship with Sirius Black. The only person that didn't think Diana was going too far was Harry, and that was because he hated Black just as much as she did.

One day, however, when Diana didn't even come down to breakfast that morning, they thought maybe she'd finally cracked. But it turned out that Hermione hadn't seen her in the girls' dormitory that morning, and she didn't show up at all the rest of the day or in the two days that followed.

"I'm really worried now," Marik said to Harry, Ron, Yugi and Bakura at dinner. "Where could Dare-kun _be_ except with _us_ for three days straight?"

"I don't know, Grave Keeper," replied Bakura, looking as concerned as the gruff Thief could be expected to look, "But I don't like it. You don't think she went after Black by herself, do you?"

"You'd think she'd have told _us_ first," Harry remarked, crossing his arms.

Right then, Seto and Hermione walked into the Great Hall and toward the five's place at the Gryffindor table.

"What do _you_ want?" Ron snapped at Hermione, "Are _we_ too dangerous to be around Harry now? Have _we_ been sent by Black to kill him _too_?"

"Ron-kun, stop it," Yugi reproached, seeing the angry and hurt look on Hermione's face, "Mione-kun's allowed to sit at the Gryffindor table just as much as you are."

Hermione looked at Seto pointedly, and the CEO sighed in annoyance before addressing the others.

"Mione-kun told me to tell you guys that…Parvati Patil told Lavender Brown…about a conversation she'd had with Dean Thomas…where he told her that Seamus Finnegan had said that…_oh_, forget this shit…Dare-kun's in the Hospital Wing."

"_What_?" Bakura and Harry shouted, standing up in unison.

"According to Mione-kun," Seto muttered, eying Hermione with a look that clearly showed that he disliked speaking for her, "And all those people who _supposedly_ spread the _rumor_, Dare-kun has been in the Hospital Wing ever since we first noticed she was missing."

"What happened?" inquired Bakura, shooting a glance behind him in Malfoy's direction as if he suspected they had gotten into a big fight and he had some sort of battle scar to prove it.

"Do you have to _ask_?" Seto asked impatiently, "Artemis came out again."

"But she's never needed to stay three days in the Hospital Wing just to recover from Artemis!" said Marik, looking worriedly confused, "Artemis doesn't usually hurt her _that_ much."

"I guess this time she has," Yugi stated, "Come on…let's go check out the Hospital Wing and see if we can get in to see her."

* * *

Madame Pomfrey opened the door of the Hospital Wing, to find Marik, Bakura and the three Gryffindor boys outside. 

"Hi…could we see Dare?" asked Harry.

Madame Pomfrey smiled sadly, as if Harry had just asked to send off someone who had just died.

"Yes, yes, of course," she said quietly, "Come on in."

The five stepped past Madame Pomfrey, and they gasped at what they saw.

"_Dare-chan_!"

Diana was on one of the hospital beds, looking like someone who had been attacked by an army of samurai swordsmen before being run over by a bulldozer. Both of her legs and one of her arms were broken, and dark bruises and deep slash-like cuts covered her face to the extent the only thing you could make out on her face were her two almond-shaped blue eyes.

Her friends immediately ran over to her bedside.

"Dare-chan, what in the seven hells happened to you?" Bakura demanded, his eyes and voice filled with alarm.

Diana gave him a weak smirk. "What does it _look_ like? Artemis beat the crap out of me."

Bakura seemed almost scared to touch her for fear of hurting her. Diana noticed this, and slowly brought up her unbroken arm to rest a hand on his.

"I'll be better soon," she assured her friends, "Poppy here can fix anything."

"It's Madame Pomfrey to _you_, young lady," the nurse reprimanded, but Diana merely smiled.

It was then that Dumbledore entered.

"Hey, Professor," Diana greeted tiredly, "What's up?"

"Owls, thestrals and anything else that may be flying around the sky this fine morning," the Headmaster replied with a slight smile.

He then turned his gaze to the boys, his smile fading. "I wonder, boys, if I may speak with you for a moment?"

The five exchanged glances, and shrugged or nodded to show their consent.

"We'll come and visit you again a little later, Dare," Harry told her.

"Do what Madame Pomfrey says and get some rest," advised Marik.

"Don't go worrying about me, guys," Diana brushed away their concerns with a smile, "You'll sound like you're going soft…guys are supposed to be all macho, I've heard. Now go on and get out of here…I'll see you later."

The five followed Dumbledore out of the Hospital Wing, stopping in the hall right outside.

"I'm sure," the Headmaster stated after he'd shut the door firmly behind him, "That you are concerned about how severe Diana's injuries have become since her encounter with Artemis last month."

The boys nodded.

"I have thought for a long time about a way to explain this," Dumbledore continued, "And one of my more sensible theories is that Artemis's behavior is somehow affected by Diana's feelings. For instance, if Diana was very stressed or very angry and not finding an outlet for those feelings, they may be expressed through Artemis's actions. I've noticed, to point out an example supporting this, that when Diana has let Artemis out when she was angry, Artemis has been more destructive than in her monthly episodes."

He paused for a moment. "So I must ask you…do you know of anything that happened recently that may cause Diana to be stressed or angry?"

The Gryffindors, Marik and Bakura looked at each other, wondering if they should tell the Headmaster that Diana learned Black was her father. Their friend likely wouldn't be happy with them for telling Dumbledore…but what if Artemis's periods became even worse?

At last Harry looked up at Dumbledore and said, "No, Professor. Nothing."

The others nodded in agreement, trying not to look awkward as they did so: it was for the best.

Dumbledore was quiet for a moment, looking at Harry over his half-moon spectacles as if he were looking for some trace of a lie, before he murmured, "Very well. Off you go."

So the five students turned and left for the dormitories again. When they were finally gone and out of earshot, Dumbledore turned to look in the direction of a large stone gargoyle.

"You may come out now, Remus."

Lupin stepped out from behind the gargoyle.

"How did you know I was here, Headmaster?"

"My dear Remus, even as students, you and your friends couldn't ever hide or pull pranks on me," Dumbledore replied.

Lupin looked down at the floor, not looking happy even though Dumbledore had obviously been trying to cheer him up.

"Something's troubling you, I see," Dumbledore observed, "Would you mind sharing, or should I let you be alone in your worries?"

Lupin leaned up against the wall, looking ill at ease. "It's just…I can't _imagine_ Diana has to go through so much…I know how it _feels_, Headmaster, you _know_ I do…but _Carly_…I feel like I've let her and the others down-"

"Never feel that way, Remus," Dumbledore stopped him from continuing, "None of these happenings are your fault, and you should never bring them upon yourself. There was nothing you could've done to change what happened."

Lupin sighed. "But that doesn't stop me from wishing I could."

"Do we ever stop wondering what would have happened if we had done something differently in the past?" asked Dumbledore, "Remus, while Diana has had to go through so much pain, it has made her stronger as a person. Sometimes, in situations like this, a lifetime of suffering can be a blessing."

"But…but if Carly hadn't died…if Sirius hadn't-" Lupin started.

"Then she would have never had empathy for people who have lost people they loved," Dumbledore finished for him, "She would have never had empathy for people who have been betrayed. Do you think she'd have had such good friends if she had never learned to cherish and be loyal to them? It's sad she had to lose so much, yes, but I think it was for the best."

Lupin frowned, looking out one of the stained glass windows sadly. "I hope you're right, Headmaster. I hope you're right."

* * *

**Kitty: End chapter.**

**Bakura: I hope Dumbledore's right too, to be frank.**

**Harry: Don't we all?**

**Lina: Not me. Then I'd have my Bakura back.**

**Kitty, Harry, Marik and Yugi: (whacks Lina on the head a thousand times)**

**Bakura: (sweatdrop)**

**Kitty: Again, everyone, I'm so, so, SO sorry that I went Sleeping Beauty on you...I honestly don't know what came over me.**

**Yugi: I suggest we ask Leon. He's the fairy tale expert around here.**

**Leon: (strolls on in) Someone call me?**

**Kitty: (glomps him) Hi Leon, nice to see you!**

**Leon: (smiles) Hi, Kitty, great to see you too. Got another fantasy book convention for us to go to?  
**

**Yugi: (raises an eyebrow) Why was I left out of this? **

**Kitty: 'Cause the only fantasy book you like really is Harry Potter.**

**Yugi: (frowns) Well, yeah...but still.**

**Leon: Don't worry, Yugi, we don't do anything intimate. In case you haven't noticed, I'm a tad young for that.**

**Yugi: (shrugs) Good point.**

**Leon: So what's up, Kitty?**

**Kitty: We have reason to believe that someone is cursing me.**

**Lina: Kitty's been in a deep fanfiction sleep for almost two months.**

**Leon: Wow, that is serious. There's only one witch that could do that strong of a spell.**

**Yugi, Kitty and Lina: WHO?**

**Leon: Laziness.**

**(crickets chirp)**

**Kitty: What?**

**Leon: That's the witch's name: Laziness.**

**Kitty: Really? Well then... (grabs a flamethrower and starts singing) GO AND HUNT HER! AND FIND HER AND KILL HER! WICKEDNESS MUST BE PUNISHED! EVIL EFFECTIVELY ELIMINATED! WICKEDNESS MUST BE PUNISHED: KILL THE WITCH!  
**

**Everyone Else: (sweatdrop) **

**Yugi: Err...R&R, folks. **


	13. Chapter 12: Go Get 'Em, Gryffindor!

**Kitty: (walks into her room and collapses onto her bed with a sigh) **

**Yugi: (comes in and sits down on the bed next to her) Are you alright, Kitten?**

**Kitty: (smiles) Just tiiiiiiired. Preparing for our school version of 'Grease' is _exhausting_.**

**Atem: (pokes his head in) But I thought you only had a tiny part.**

**Yugi: (glares)**

**Atem: What? She does!**

**Kitty: I may only be a feminine version of the radio host Vince Fontaine, but that does not mean I haven't been busy. Opening night is tomorrow, ya know.**

**Noa: (pokes his head in) At least you were able to finish this chappie.**

**Kitty: (bitterly) Yeah, after about one and a half weeks. It seems the witch Laziness has a good friend witch named Busy, and now both are taking turns in tormenting me.  
**

**Lina: (rolls her eyes) R&R, folks!**

**

* * *

**_**Chapter Twelve:**_

_**Go Get 'Em, Gryffindor!**_

The next day, McGonagall caught Harry in the hallway for a few minutes to give him back his Firebolt, unscathed and just as beautiful as it had been when he had first unwrapped it. Needless to say, Harry was very relieved to get it back: Ron, too, was ecstatic, as was the rest of Gryffindor House. No _way_ would anyone beat Harry _now_!

It even looked like Hermione, Ron and Harry would make up and forget their argument about investigating the Firebolt…at least, until Ron went up to the Boys' Dormitory to give Scabbers his rat tonic that evening.

A strangled yell echoed down the staircase to the Boys' Dorm, before the youngest Weasley boy came running down the stairs, wild-eyed and dragging a bed-sheet behind him.

"LOOK!" he roared, shaking the sheet in front of Hermione's face, "SCABBERS! _LOOK_!"

On the sheet was a small, rat-sized spot of red blood.

"HE'S GONE! AND YOU KNOW WHAT WAS ON THE FLOOR?"

"N-no," Hermione stammered.

Ron threw something onto Hermione's homework, and Harry, Yugi and Hermione leaned forward to make out several long, ginger cat hairs.

This fight looked like the end of Ron and Hermione's friendship. Ron was enraged that Hermione had never taken Crookshanks's attempts to eat Scabbers seriously and hadn't kept a close enough watch on him, while Hermione maintained that Ron had no proof Crookshanks had eaten Scabbers, as the cat hairs might've been there since Christmas, and that Ron was merely accusing her cat because he had been biased toward him ever since Crookshanks landed on his head in the Magical Menagerie. In fact, Hermione said, there wasn't even any proof to prove Scabbers _was_ dead.

Harry and the Japanese boys couldn't help but agree with Ron that Crookshanks had probably eaten Scabbers: Yugi, Ryou, Seto and Marik, however, were also angry with Ron due to his degrading of Hermione in front of their classmates about her supposed _"murder"_ of his rat, and so weren't talking to Ron or Hermione until the fight stopped.

Two days later, Diana came out of the Hospital Wing, completely healed, and her friends were all glad to see her better.

"You feeling better, Dare-chan?" asked Bakura, looking a little annoyed when Marik ran over and gave her a big hug.

"Physically, sure," she replied, pulling out of Marik's hug, "As for me psychologically…I will be in a few minutes."

She walked toward Harry and Ron's seats at the Gryffindor table as if she was a solider assigned an important mission to carry out.

"Harry…Ron…could I speak to you for a moment?"

They looked up at her in surprise, exchanged a glance, and then shrugged.

"_Alone_," Diana added pointedly, grabbing them both by the sleeve and pulling them into the hallway.

"What's up, Dare?" asked Harry when they were out of the Great Hall.

"Mione," Artemis's Heir replied.

"What about her?" snapped Ron.

"She's been visiting me a lot lately, _that's_ what," Diana snapped back, "And according to what she's told me, you've been ignoring her because you think Crookshanks ate Scabbers."

"You're taking _her_ side, then?" Ron growled.

"I've had _enough_ with _taking_ _sides_!" Diana retorted, "I don't think _anyone_ should be taking sides when the people fighting are _supposed_ to be _friends_."

"_Her cat ate my rat_!" shouted Ron.

"So you're going to beat up on _her_ for something that all cats do and that she couldn't have stopped?" Diana answered coldly.

"She could've guarded him better!"

"Mione _has_ a life, you know, and one a lot more busy than _yours_, I might add! She's almost as tired as _Lupin_ is with all of the courses she's taking: do you _honestly_ think she has time to look after a cat all day? With that argument, we could also say that _you_ should've guarded _Scabbers_ better!"

"She isn't even accepting the fact that Scabbers is _dead_!" Ron muttered, "If she at least said she was _sorry_-"

"Not like you'd _listen_," Diana interrupted angrily, "It doesn't _matter_ whether Crookshanks ate Scabbers or not: you hurting Mione the way you are is nothing short of heartless! I have _better_ things to do than to be your mother and _discipline_ you, Ron!"

Ron's face was a bright, angry crimson, contrasting very well with Diana's deathly pale face. He looked ready to fight back, but Diana's next statement was enough to make him stop.

"And you know what? Mione told me about your treatment of her in _tears_…I hope you're _happy_ with yourself, Ron."

Diana turned on her heel and left. Ron was left speechless.

"She's right, you know," Harry told his best friend at last, his arms crossed.

Ron looked at him, his brown glare dangerous. "Yeah, yeah…as _usual_."

And with that, he walked back into the Great Hall, too proud to listen to Diana's words and leaving Harry alone.

* * *

The next day was Gryffindor's big match against Ravenclaw, and although Harry had felt bad about him and Ron fighting with Hermione, he was quickly distracted by the excitement toward the upcoming match. The rest of Gryffindor house was celebrating before the match had even started, more than convinced that Harry riding a Firebolt guaranteed their success, and Harry felt himself being blown away by the flattery and encouragement. The only thing he thought would make it all perfect would be to have his friends talk with him again and stop fighting with each other. 

Just before eleven, the Gryffindor team headed out of the locker room and onto the field. Wood and the Ravenclaw Quidditch Captain, Roger Davies, shook hands, before the teams mounted their brooms.

'_Here we go…' _Harry thought to himself.

He remembered his wand sitting in the pocket of his T-shirt underneath his Quidditch robes, then of the dementor on the train, and just barely caught himself before he could shutter at the thought.

_'I only hope I won't need it…'

* * *

_

Diana was sitting in the stands with Marik on her left and Yugi on her right. Yugi and Marik still weren't talking with Hermione as not to get mucked up in her and Ron's fight, so Hermione was sitting alone under the bleachers, working on some homework as she watched the game. Diana would've stayed with her, but Hermione told her to leave her alone to do her work.

Cho Chang, the Ravenclaw Seeker, was tagging Harry, obviously thinking to stick by him as to stay in his way long enough either to catch the Snitch or to give the Ravenclaw Chasers enough time to score so many goals that even if he did catch the Snitch, Gryffindor would lose.

Marik, looking through a pair of binoculars at the action above, suddenly gasped and brought the binoculars down to graze the edge of the stands.

"Oh no!" he cried, bringing down the binoculars to look at his friends in horror, "The dementors are here again!"

"_What_?" Yugi and Diana said together.

Diana grabbed Marik's binoculars, and to her shock, she did indeed see three tall, black-hooded figures on one edge of the stadium.

"Oh no," she whispered, "Harry."

She looked up at Harry in terror…but it almost looked like the dementors had no effect on him. He pulled his wand from his Quidditch robes and yelled at the top of his lungs, "_EXPECTO PATRONUM_!"

An enormous, silver-white something burst from Harry's wand that shot directly at the dementors and knocked them backward: the Seeker, however, had not waited long enough to watch the dementors fall, for he had stretched his wand hand out to grab the Snitch.

Marik and Yugi were jumping up and down in exhilaration.

"He _did_ it! He _caught_ it!" the King of Games cheered.

"And the dementors didn't affect him at _all_!" added the male Egyptian.

"That's because those things _aren't_ dementors."

The boys turned to look at Diana, who, unlike them, was not excited or happy. She only stared at the dementors with her eyes narrowed.

"Come on."

She got up from her seat and ran down the bleachers and to the field. Marik looked at Yugi in bewilderment, and the two ran after her.

When they caught up with Diana next to the dementors, they gawked.

They _weren't_ dementors. They were only Malfoy, Crabbe, Goyle and the Slytherin Quidditch Captain, Marcus Flint, lying in a crumbled heap of robes on the ground. Malfoy had probably been standing on Goyle's shoulders as to look like one tall dementor, and now Goyle's head was stuck inside the robe as Malfoy struggled to get free.

Yugi and Marik couldn't stop themselves from roaring with laughter at the sight of the Slytherins trying to extricate themselves, from the robes, but Diana had her arms crossed and looked along the lines of murderous. At last, she seized Malfoy by the collar, pulling him out of his and Goyle's shared robe and off of the ground to look her in the eye.

"Having fun?" she asked, a dangerous smirk twisting itself onto her face.

Malfoy initially looked scared at the malevolent look on Diana's face: then his expression morphed into an angry glare.

"You think this is _funny_, Randall?" he hissed.

"No," the redhead replied coldly, "I think the word to describe it, as well as you, isn't _funny_…no, I'd say it's more along the lines of _'pathetic.'_"

And she dropped him sharply on the ground as McGonagall and Lupin ran over, Lupin quite surprised and McGonagall beside herself with fury.

"An _unworthy_ trick!" the Deputy Headmistress shouted, "A _low_ and _cowardly_ attempt to sabotage the Gryffindor Seeker! Detention for all of you, and fifty points from Slytherin! I shall be speaking to Professor Dumbledore about this, make _no_ mistake…!"

Harry came over then, shocked to see the Slytherins pushing themselves out of their dementor disguises. He looked at Diana incredulously.

"You mean…there _weren't_ any dementors? That Patronus was for _nothing_?"

Diana wrapped an arm around him. "At least you know you can do one…now you can _guarantee_ you'll be able to use it for something soon."

Harry still looked disappointed, so she added, "Hey…George told me he and Fred are planning a victory party for you in the Gryffindor common room tonight…let's not miss the fun at your own party, eh?"

The Gryffindor Seeker couldn't help but smile. "Yeah…sure."

* * *

The party would've been wonderful if Ron hadn't been faithful enough to remind everyone that Hermione had helped kill Scabbers and the bookworm hadn't ran up to the girls' dormitory in tears. Diana had glared quite fiercely at Ron for that and followed Hermione up the stairs to bed. 

The redhead settled into bed, trying to ignore the sound of Hermione crying in the bunk above her. It took quite a while before she was finally able to close her eyes and fall asleep.

* * *

_Diana wandered the grounds, keeping her eyes open for that gray-eyed dog…that specter-like canine that kept her from peace every night. _

_But the dog just wouldn't show up and get it over with. He just had to torment her in the back of her mind, ready to pounce at any moment._

_At last Diana heard the familiar sound of fast footsteps through the grass._

_Diana turned to look at the dog, but instead found herself facing a fox._

_She stared at the creature, bewildered, and the fox looked back at her almost kindly. It was then Diana suddenly realized the fox's eyes were an odd blue._

"_What…?" _

_Diana didn't really know what she was trying to ask the fox or, indeed, why she was trying to ask the fox anything. It didn't matter, however, for there was a rustling in the grass that the fox turned to face. Then the fox took off after the rustling as it moved toward the Forbidden Forest._

"_Wait!" the red-haired witch shouted, before taking off after it. _

_She didn't know why she was so worried for the fox's safety…but something just told her, in her heart, that that fox was going into danger. _

_All of a sudden, she felt herself being thrown backwards into the ground, and found the gray-eyed dog on top of her once more._

"_GET OFF!" Diana shouted at the dog, trying to get up and go after the fox…but the dog just wouldn't shift. He merely looked at her with his distant gray eyes and kept her rooted to the ground._

_A green light lit up the Forest, and Diana knew…the fox was dead._

_She felt herself shaking with fury, and her eyes narrowed at the dog. It was all his fault…if he had just let her go, the fox could've been saved…_

"_**You couldn't have saved her…"** an unfamiliar voice suddenly spoke._

_Diana assumed it must be the dog, but she didn't care._

"_Because of you!" she shouted. "It's all your fault!"_

_The dog suddenly looked up in fright, before jumping off of her and running away into the Forest._

_Diana slowly turned to find dementors closing in around her…_

_The little Muggle girl's scream echoed in her ear as the dementors grabbed hold of her, swallowing her up in a sea of cold, heartless dark that made her sink into a world of nightmares and unfamiliar screams…

* * *

_

"_AAAAAAARRRRRGGGGGHHHHH_! _NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO_!"

Diana awoke with a start to the sound of a very, _very_ familiar scream. The scream of a friend…the scream of…

"_Ron_!"

Diana shot out of bed and raced into the boys' dormitory.

"_Ron_! Ron, what the hell happened?"

The hangings on Ron's bed were torn from one side, and the youngest Weasley boy had a look of unadulterated terror on his face. The other boys in the dorm, as well as some of the girls who had followed Diana for the source of the noise, looked bewildered.

"_Black_!" Ron shrieked, "_Sirius Black_! With a knife!"

"_What_?" Harry and Diana said together.

"_Here_! Just now! Slashed the curtains! Woke me up!"

"Are you sure you weren't _dreaming_, Ron?" asked Dean Thomas.

"I'm _telling_ you, I _saw_ him!"

"What the _devil_ is going on in here?"

McGonagall and Percy had just arrived.

"I'm delighted that Gryffindor won the match, but _really_, this is outrageous!" snapped Gryffindor's Head of House.

"It's not _our_ fault!" Lavender Brown said indignantly, "Weasley just had a nightmare about Sirius Black being in our common room-"

"IT _WASN'T_ A NIGHTMARE!" Ron yelled, "I WOKE UP, AND SIRIUS BLACK WAS STANDING OVER ME, HOLDING A KNIFE!"

McGonagall stared at him. "Don't be _ridiculous_, Weasley, how could he have gotten through the portrait hole?"

"Ask _him_!" Ron insisted, pointing to the back of Sir Cadogan's portrait, "Ask him if he saw-"

McGonagall silenced him with a suspicious glare, but nevertheless, she pushed the portrait hole open and went outside to talk with Sir Cadogan. The Gryffindors listened nervously for an answer.

"Sir Cadogan, did you just let a man inside of Gryffindor Tower?"

"Certainly, good lady!" spoke Sir Cadogan.

Diana's eyes widened. There was a hush on both sides of the portrait hole.

"You…you _did_?" McGonagall stammered, "But…but the _password_…!"

"He had 'em!" Sir Cadogan replied proudly, "Had the whole week's on a little piece of paper, my lady!"

McGonagall pulled herself back into the common room, white as chalk and her eyes narrowed both dangerously and full of fear.

"Which person," she whispered, her voice shaking, "Which _thoughtless_ person wrote down this week's passwords and left them lying around?"

There was utter silence, only broken by the smallest of terrified squeaks. At last, Neville Longbottom raised a trembling hand slowly into the air.

* * *

**Kitty: (humming 'Greased Lightning' under her breath) End chapter.**

**Noa: And once more with the DUN DUN DUN! **

**Lina: How many more times you gonna put the DUN DUN DUN in there, Hikari?**

**Kitty: As many places as the DUN DUN DUN is in the books and in one extra instance where it's not. **

**Lina: (sweatdrop) Oh, that's helpful. **

**Yugi: Poor Neville...it wasn't even his fault.**

**Kitty: (nods) I adore Neville: he's so sweet...and he's a damn good dancer in the Goblet of Fire movie. (grins)  
**

**Lina: Better than a lot of the dancers dancing for Grease. (sticks her tongue out)**

**Kitty: Now, don't be mean, Lina...the dancing peeps for Grease are pretty good. Better than I'll ever be, at any rate.**

**Yugi: Kitty, I've just thought of something.**

**Kitty: Yeah?**

**Yugi: I think we should write a play or something...mix a whole bunch of cool things together and act it out.**

**Lina: Ooh, that's a cool idea!**

**Atem: I vote it's my life story.**

**Bakura: (comes out of nowhere and whacks Atem)**

**Atem: OW! What?**

**Yugi: I was thinking it could more be like 'Into the Woods,' mixing all sorts of fairy tales together...except with other stuff.**

**Lina: Like angst!**

**Noa: And virtual worlds!**

**Kitty: And dancing drag queens!**

**(Others stare at Kitty)**

**Kitty: What? RENT rocks my socks.**

**Atem: (laughs) R&R, everyone! **


	14. Chapter 13: Ghosts and Grudges

**Kitty: (singing) _I feel pretty, oh so pretty, oh so pretty and witty and-_ (notices there's an audience) Oh! Hey all! **

**Yugi: Finished the next chapter, Kitten?**

**Kitty: (grins widely) Oh, yes. And I LOVE IT! (dances around the room)**

**Everyone Else: (blinks)**

**Lina: Is the chapter really that wonderful?**

**Kitty: Well...yeah...sort of...it's got one of the best sections of the book in it!**

**Atem: Then we'd better read this chapter and see which section that is. **

**Harry: (nods) R&R!**

**

* * *

**_**Chapter Thirteen:**_

_**Ghosts and Grudges**_

After Black almost stabbed Ron, Diana felt even more on-edge than usual. She knew that she couldn't hesitate to find and kill Black as soon as possible, especially since the criminal had vanished from the Hogwarts grounds without a trace yet again.

Neville was punished greatly by McGonagall for losing the passwords that helped Black get in. Not only was he in detention for a month and removed of Hogsmeade privileges for the year, he received a Howler from his grandmother that lectured him about disgracing his whole family.

There was only one bit of good news in Black's night visit to the Gryffindor Tower, and that was that Sir Cadogan had been fired. The Fat Lady was back, but only on the condition for more protection, a word which here means "two menacing trolls with clubs twice the size of Diana's head." Needless to say, the Japanese boys in the other houses were feeling less inclined to follow their Gryffindor friends to their portrait hole.

About three days after Black's appearance and disappearance, Diana sat down with Harry, Ron, Marik and Yugi in the Great Hall (Hermione wasn't there, likely in the library instead, as she and Ron were still not speaking), with heavy bags under her eyes not unlike the ones Lupin sometimes had.

"Dare-kun, are you okay?" Marik asked in concern.

Diana shook her head tiredly. She had stayed up all night searching through books for some trace of information about Black that could help her track him down to come up with nothing, and was in a listless, cranky mood.

Right then, Diana's owl Aries flew in, crashed right in the middle of the table and landed squarely on Ron's plate.

"_Learn how to land, you stupid pigeon_!" Diana snapped, snatching the mail from Aries's beak.

She looked at the addressee. "It's from my Aunt Gwen."

"Do you think she heard about Black?" asked Ron.

"I'll bet anything she did," Diana answered, "She _is_ an Auror, after all…and she's been working closely with the people trying to catch Black."

"It might be important," said Harry, "Go on and open it."

Diana nodded, and read the letter out loud:

* * *

_**Dear Diana,**_

_**I've heard Black again stepped inside the Hogwarts grounds and this time actually made it inside of your common room. Give Ron my regards for at least having the sense to scream, as I'm sure you wouldn't have, since I've heard from Madame Pince you have been checking out every Hogwarts yearbook you can get your hands on to find information and catch Black yourself.**_

_**Diana, if you forget everything you've ever known, then remember this: Black is ruthless, and he's hurt people who were considered his friends. You know he's an enemy, so you should leave it to the Ministry to deal with him. They know what they're doing, you don't, and you should realize that if you want to find and kill him, which is the worst thing to want right now. Catching Black is my and the Ministry's job, and it's high time you committed to your job as a student and focused on your studies instead of running after mass murderers. **_

_**Stay out of trouble,**_

**_Gwen_

* * *

**

Diana crumpled Gwen's letter up, looking frustrated, impatient and angry, all at the same time.

"Thanks a _lot_!" she growled, and Harry patted her shoulder sympathetically.

"But she _is_ right, you know," Yugi commented, "Black _is_ ruthless. And that means your obsession with learning about him and getting revenge on him is only going to put you in danger-"

"You're back on this again, are you?" Diana snapped, "Listen, I've helped Harry fight _Voldemort_ before…Black should be _nothing_ after _him_."

"But you fought Voldemort at his _weakest_," Marik pointed out, "And you'd be fighting Black at his _strongest_…there's a huge difference."

"Yeah, go on and side with my aunt, why don't ya?" retorted Diana, "She only tells me to stay out of trouble so I can go on pretending that my father never helped kill my mum!"

"She knows that as well as you do, Dare-kun," Yugi said quietly, "She must've known Black pretty well since your mum married him: she already lost your mom, and she probably doesn't want to lose you either."

"She doesn't care about _anything_ except following what the _Ministry_ says," Diana muttered, "If she _really_ was worried about me, she'd actually write me a letter for something _other_ than a reprimand."

* * *

That Saturday, Diana convinced Ryou and Harry to meet up with her and Ron in Hogsmeade. The two were both eager to see more of the little village, since their visit at Christmas was rather short, but they both planned to stay under Harry's Invisibility Cloak this time so no one could recognize them and tell the teachers.

Finally, after fifteen minutes of waiting outside Honeydukes, Diana felt something poke her shoulder.

"It's us," whispered Harry's voice.

"It's about _time_," Diana hissed, "Where have you _been_?"

"Snape was hanging around," said Ryou's voice, "Probably suspicious as to why we were meeting in an empty hall with a large statue in the middle."

Ron and Diana shrugged and the four headed down High Street. They visited the Post Office, shopped a good long while in Zonko's, and then headed up toward the Shrieking Shack. They never got that close to it, however, and instead leaned on the fence situated a mile away and looked at it.

"It's supposedly the most haunted house in Britain," muttered Ron, "Even the Hogwarts ghosts avoid it."

Harry and Ryou were considering whether or not to take off the cloak as they were completely alone on the hill: the idea left their minds immediately, though, when they heard a familiar voice coming their way.

"…should have an owl from Father any time now. He had to go to the hearing to tell him about my arm…how I couldn't use it for three months."

It was Malfoy, and two sniggers to his statement told the three Gryffindors and Ryou that Crabbe and Goyle were with him. The three Slytherins came into view, Malfoy still talking animatedly.

"I really wish I could hear that great hairy moron trying to defend himself…" here he put on a spiteful imitation of Hagrid, "_'There's no 'arm in 'im, 'onest!'_ That hippogriff is as good as _dead_-"

"Don't count the deaths before a massacre, Malfoy," growled Diana, obviously angry about his mockery of Hagrid, "At least Hagrid is trying to protect something he _cares_ about…unlike your father, who is only protecting your pride and a little cut that you've renamed an _injury_."

Malfoy looked at the two redheads and grinned malevolently.

"And what are _you_ doing up here?" he sneered, "Looking for a home to move into once you two have got married? Well, I guess it's better than what _Weasley's_ accustomed to…probably looks like a _palace_…"

Ron, red-faced and furious, was ready to jump on Malfoy and beat him up, but Diana and the still-invisible Harry held him back.

"We'll handle him, Ron-kun," Diana barely heard Bakura's voice say.

Diana, not entirely sure what the Tomb Robber and Harry were going to do, glared at Malfoy and decided to keep him busy.

"I won't defend my dignity to you, Malfoy: that would be a waste of my time and energy. As for _Ron's_ dignity, I would only warn you that I have a wand and I'd be more than glad to use it."

"_Ooh_, I'm shaking," mocked Malfoy, "What'll you do, curse my hair pink?"

SPLAT.

A large handful of mud had been scooped out of the path in thin air and it hit Malfoy squarely in the back of the head. Malfoy whirled around for the source of the throw, trying to wipe his white-blond hair clean of the muck.

"Tempting…but I think _brown_ is more your color," scorned Diana.

Malfoy turned his head around sharply to look at her as if questioning if she had done it: to this, she put her wand back in her pocket pointedly and said quite casually to Ron, "Very haunted up here, isn't it?"

"Very," Ron agreed as if he were commenting on the weather, "Doesn't seem to have any signs of clearing up, either."

SPLAT.

Another piece of sludge found its way toward the Slytherins, this time hitting Crabbe and Goyle right in the face. They hopped around furiously, trying to rub the mud out of their small eyes.

"It came from over there!" shrieked Malfoy, pointing at a spot that Diana hoped was nowhere near Harry and Bakura.

Crabbe looked wildly around the spot, but saw nothing but Diana and Ron anywhere in the immediate area, so he started toward the two near the fence. Diana felt a flash of worry, but she saw Crabbe stumble on something and guessed Harry or Bakura had stuck out his leg and made him trip. The next thing Diana knew, Crabbe was on the ground and the cloak had been tugged off of Harry's face, making it look like Harry's head was floating in mid-air. Malfoy stared for a little less than a second, before screaming in fright and running away at breakneck speed, Crabbe and Goyle behind him. Harry pulled the cloak back over his face, but the damage had been done. 

"Harry, Bakura, run for it!" said Ron worriedly, "If Malfoy tells anyone…you better get back to the castle, quick!"

"We'll come along after you," Diana assured them, looking around the area as she spoke, not knowing where they were, "Go on, get out of here!"

"See you later," muttered Ryou's voice, and Diana heard Ryou and Harry running off back toward the village and Honeydukes. She and Ron took one look at each other, before heading off toward the exit to Hogsmeade.

* * *

Harry and Ryou ran along the passage under Honeydukes as fast as they could. When they got to the end, they left the Invisibility Cloak inside, thinking that it'd be a giveaway if someone saw it. Ryou tapped the wall of the passage and hoisted himself out before helping Harry out too. They shut the witch's hump and just started to run back toward their common rooms…

When they headed straight into Severus Snape.

"_So_," hissed Snape, a look of suppressed triumph on his face.

Ryou tried not to look anxious, but he knew how guilty Harry and he looked with their faces all sweaty and their hands covered with mud.

"Come with me, Potter…Bakura," said Snape coolly.

The two followed him downstairs to his office. Ryou nervously wiped his hands clean on the inside of his robes. _/Oh no, now what are we going to do? I never should've listened to you, Yami/_

_-What?- _snapped Bakura,_ -You wanted to go to Hogsmeade too!-_

_/But I knew it was dangerous! And you were the one who started throwing mud at Malfoy/_

_-That whiny little brat deserved it,-_ Bakura muttered.

The innocent of the two rolled his eyes.

"Don't you roll your eyes at me, Bakura," Snape said coldly, and Ryou blinked as he came back to reality.

"I-I wasn't-" Ryou tried to explain, but it was no use. They had arrived at Snape's office, and Snape pointed to two chairs in front of his desk sharply.

"_Sit_."

The two boys sat, but Snape himself remained standing.

"Mr. Malfoy has just been to see me with a strange story," said the Potions master, "He told me that he was up by the Shrieking Shack when he ran into Randall and Weasley…apparently _alone_. He stated that he was talking to Randall when a large amount of mud hit him in the back of the head. How do you think _that_ could have happened, Mr. Bakura?"

Ryou tried to look slightly surprised. "I don't know, Sensei."

Snape gave him a long, piercing look, before he turned his head to Harry.

"Mr. Malfoy then saw an _extraordinary_ apparition. Can you imagine what it might have been, Potter?"

"No," Harry replied, obviously trying to sound innocently curious.

"It was your _head_, Potter. _Floating_ in midair."

There was a long silence. Then…

"Maybe Malfoy should go see Pomfrey-san, Sensei," Ryou said at last, "It sounds like he's having hallucinations-"

"Malfoy is _not_ having hallucinations, Mr. Bakura," Snape snarled, "Mr. Potter's head is not _allowed_ in Hogsmeade, nor is any _other_ part of his body, and if his _head_ was there, the _rest_ of him was as well."

The professor's uneven yellowish teeth were bared.

"Turn out your pockets, both of you!" he spat suddenly.

At first they didn't move: then when Snape threatened to take them to Dumbledore if they disobeyed, Ryou and Harry emptied their pockets, laying the bags of tricks they'd bought from Zonko's and Harry's Marauder's Map on the teacher's desk.

Snape picked up Harry's Zonko bag.

"Dare gave it to me," Harry lied quickly, "Sh-she brought them from Hogsmeade last time-"

"Indeed?" Snape interrupted coolly, "And you've been carrying them around ever since? How very touching…"

He then picked up the Map.

"Spare bit of parchment," Harry answered, trying to sound off-hand.

Snape eyed Harry as he turned the parchment over. "_Surely_ you don't need such an _old_ piece of parchment? Why don't I just…throw it _away_?"

His hand moved toward the fire.

"_No_!" Harry couldn't stop himself from panicking.

"_So_!" said Snape victoriously, "Is this another _treasured_ gift from Miss Randall…or is it…something _else_? A _letter_, perhaps, written in invisible ink, or…instructions to get into Hogsmeade without passing the dementors?"

Ryou blinked in surprise at how close his guess was: Snape's eyes gleamed.

"Let me see…" he muttered, laying the map flat on his desk and tapping it with his wand, "Reveal your secret!"

Nothing happened. Ryou tried with everything in him not to look at Harry for fear that Snape might see their anxiety.

"Show yourself!" snapped Snape, tapping the map sharply with his wand.

Still the map stayed blank, and Ryou was praying to every manner of God and Buddha that it remained that way.

"I, Professor Severus Snape, command you to yield the information you conceal!" Snape shouted, slamming his wand once more onto the parchment.

And then…as if an invisible hand were writing upon it, words appeared upon the smooth surface of the map:

**_Mr. Moony presents his compliments to Professor Snape, and begs him to keep his abnormally large nose out of other people's business._**

Snape froze. Ryou stared in shock at the writing, but was distracted from it when another message appeared below it:

**_Mr. Prongs agrees with Mr. Moony, and would like to add that Professor Snape is an ugly git._**

The two boys probably would've laughed were it not for the situation they were in. Ryou pleaded that this was the end, but the Map wasn't done.

**_Mr. Padfoot would like to register his astonishment that an idiot like that ever became a professor._**

Harry mouthed out the words in horror as even more writing appeared.

**_Mr. Wormtail bids Professor Snape good day, and advises him to wash his hair, the slimeball._**

The boys could see Snape's shock and fury, and exchanged an anxious look.

_/Please let it stop…please let it stop…/_ thought Ryou.

But the Map just kept going.

_**Miss Trickster agrees with everything said, and would like to encourage Professor Snape to achieve at least half the IQ of a chipmunk before giving her friends orders again.**_

Ryou wondered if all of the Marauders and Spies were ready to give their opinion and struggled to remember how many there were so he'd have an idea of when their mocking of Snape would cease.

_**Miss Clawpaw would like to congratulate Professor Snape on his baby, unless the shape of his stomach and his cranky temperament are for another reason.**_

Snape involuntarily looked at his stomach. Ryou could hear Bakura roaring with laughter from his soul-room, but he couldn't make himself see the humor. Fortunately for Ryou, the next message ended his torment.

_**Miss Nightwing points out to Miss Clawpaw that Professor Snape couldn't have a baby, and as he will never find someone to have one with him, should probably stop teaching and retire to become a scarecrow.**_

Ryou was standing perfectly still, as if waiting for a bomb to fall.

"_So_…" Snape whispered, "We'll see about _this_…"

He strode over to his fire, seized a fistful of glittering powder from a jar on the fireplace, and threw it into the flames.

"_Lupin_!" Snape roared into the fire, "I want a word!"

Harry and Ryou stared at the fire in confusion, before Lupin clambered out of the fireplace, brushing ash off of his shabby robes.

"You called, Severus?" Lupin asked evenly.

"Yes," Snape replied, walking back to his desk to grab the map, "I just asked Potter and Bakura to empty their pockets, and Potter was carrying _this_."

He pointed at the Map where the words of the Marauders and the Spies still shone brightly. An odd, closed expression appeared on Lupin's face.

"Well?" asked Snape.

Lupin didn't speak: he only stared at the Map in a pensive sort of silence.

"_Well_?" Snape repeated, "This parchment is _clearly_ full of Dark Magic…this is _supposed_ to be your area of _expertise_, Lupin."

Lupin looked up and spoke to Snape mildly. "Full of Dark Magic, Severus? Looks to me as though it's merely a piece of parchment that insults whoever reads it…_childish_, but certainly not _dangerous_. Probably a joke product-"

Right on cue, Ron came bursting into the office, completely out of breath and stopping just short of Snape's desk.

"I…gave…Harry…that…stuff," he panted as Diana ran in after him, looking equally exhausted, "Bought…it…in Zonko's…ages…ago…"

"Well then!" said Lupin, clapping his hands cheerfully, "That clears _that_ up! Severus, I'll take this back, shall I?" he added, folding the map and tucking it into his robes without waiting for a response. "Now, boys, Diana, come with me, I need a word about my vampire essay…excuse me, Severus…"

With that, the four students and Lupin left the office and walked all the way back into the entrance hall, before Harry turned to Lupin.

"Professor, I-"

"I don't want to hear explanations," Lupin told him quietly, "I happen to know that this Map was confiscated by Mr. Filch many years ago…yes, I _know_ it's a map," he sighed when Diana looked ready to ask, "I _don't_ want to know how it fell into your possession, but I am _astounded_ you didn't hand it in, particularly after what happened the _last_ time a student left information about the castle lying around. For this reason, I can't let you have it back."

None of the boys had expected anything less, and Diana was too eager on an explanation to argue.

"Do you _know_ these guys?" she asked, reasoning that was the only way he'd know the old bit of parchment was a Map.

"We've met," Lupin answered shortly.

Diana would've asked him more were it not for the serious look on his face as he looked at Harry.

"Don't expect me to cover up for you again, Harry. I can't _make_ you take Sirius Black seriously, but I would have thought what you'd heard when the dementors get close to you would've had more of an effect on you. Your parents gave their _lives_ to save you, Harry, and gambling their sacrifice for a bag of magic tricks is a poor way to repay them."

And so he walked away, leaving Harry as well as his friends feeling very guilty indeed.

"It's my fault," said Diana at last, "I persuaded you guys to come…Lupin's right: we shouldn't have done it-"

It was then that Hermione and Seto approached them.

"Come to have a good gloat?" Ron demanded savagely, "Or have you just been to tell on us?"

"_Ron_!" snapped Diana, and Seto and Ryou both gave Ron a glare.

"No," replied Hermione, holding up a letter and her eyes filling with tears, "I-I just thought you aught to know…Hagrid lost his case. Buckbeak is going to be executed."

* * *

**Kitty: End.**

**Diana: NOOOOOOO! BUCKBEAK! (cries)**

**Atem: Well, at least I know which section you meant, Kitty...and I agree: it is one of the best parts of the book.**

**Sirius, James and Remus: (grinning broadly) **

**Lina: But who the hell are those Spy girls?**

**Kitty: (smirks) Like I'd tell you. I actually think it's quite obvious...wonder if any of the reviewers can guess them.**

**Yugi: T'will be interesting...hey, Kitten, shall we go watch your Narnia DVD again?**

**Kitty: We shall! We have tons of wonderful time thanks to my Spring Break!**

**Yugi: Oh, the wonderous Spring Break! May everyone worship it! **

**A Choir of Angels: Hallelujah! Hallelujah! **

**Sirius, James and Remus: R&R!**


	15. Chapter 14: A Victory Evens Out a Loss

**Kitty: (singing cheerfully) _Got so much free time...__oh, tons of me time...lots of time to write chapters!_**

**Yugi: Well, I guess since you aren't going anywhere for Spring Break, you got a lot of time, eh Kitten?**

**Kitty: Indeed...I'm on a roll writing chapters: finished these four upcoming chapters in three days! I'm so wonderfully proud of myself.**

**Atem: (sweatdrop) Do you _honestly _have nothing else to do but _write_?**

**Kitty: What, would you rather I do laundry and watch the Trogdor the Burninator Flash all day instead?**

**Bakura: I _love _that thing, Kitty. Trogdor pwns _everything_.**

**Kitty: You _would _think that way, wouldn't you?**

**Atem: You're talking to the King of Flamethrowers. Of _course _he thinks that way.**

**Bakura: (sings) _TROGDOOOOOOOORRRR! TROGDOOOOOOORRRR! Trogdor was a man...uh...he was a dragon-man! Uh...maybe he was just a dragon...but he was still TROGDOOOOOORRRR! TROGDOOOOOORRRR!_**

**Everyone Else: (SWEATDROP)**

**Yugi: _Okaaaaaaay_...er...R&R, everyone!**

**

* * *

**_**Chapter Fourteen:**_

_**A Victory Evens Out A Loss**_

After Hermione had informed the others about Buckbeak losing his trial, the friends at once put all of their other stuff aside to work on helping Hagrid. Hermione had given Ron a big hug and apologized for what happened to Scabbers through choked sobs, and Ron (kind of scared at the sight of Hermione crying) told her he was sorry for teasing her. Even Diana had put down looking for Black for a little while to try and help with Hagrid's appeal, which was the last possible chance to save Buckbeak.

Sadly the friends were only able to talk to Hagrid during Care of Magical Creatures, since the security for Sirius Black prevented them from going out of the school after dark and Harry was too nervous to go retrieve his Invisibility Cloak from the one-eyed witch statue, for fear Snape might still be hanging around there to try to catch him again.

Poor Hagrid seemed almost disbelieving at Buckbeak's verdict.

"S'all my fault…" he told the Brits, Yugi and Marik during the Gryffindors' and Slytherins' lesson, "Got all tongue-tied…I kept droppin' me notes and forgettin' all them dates ya looked up for me, Hermione…and then ol' Lucius Malfoy stood up and said his bit, and the Committee just did 'xactly what he told 'em…"

"There's still the _appeal_, Hagrid," Diana said sharply, "Don't give up yet…we're _all_ working on it. Hell, even _Ron's_ helping, and he _hates_ the library! Don't worry: we'll make _sure_ they don't hurt Buckbeak."

But it was only to cheer Hagrid up that Diana was so firm. She knew as well as anyone how scary Lucius Malfoy could be, and knew very well what he would do to get his way. Hagrid seemed to know it too, and started to cry despite Diana's optimistic words.

"Look at him blubber!" said a nasty voice.

Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle had been listening to the conversation.

"Have you ever _seen_ anything so _pathetic_?" mocked Malfoy, "And he's supposed to be our _teacher_!"

All the Slytherins but Marik roared with laughter. Yugi, Harry and Ron looked ready to tear him apart, but someone else had gotten to Malfoy before they did…

_SMACK_!

Hermione had slapped Malfoy full across the face: the Slytherin staggered, and the whole class stood in awe as she raised her hand again.

"How _dare_ you call Hagrid _pathetic_, you foul, evil, little _cockroach_-"

"_Mione_!" said Ron, both stunned and impressed, grabbing her hand as she swung it back so she couldn't slap Malfoy again.

"Get _off_, Ron!" shrieked the bookworm, pulling out her wand and trying to pull her other hand free from Ron's grip, "Let me teach that slimeball a lesson! _C'mon_, let me _go_-"

The bell rang for the end of class, but no one moved. Crabbe and Goyle looked at Malfoy as if awaiting instructions. Malfoy grumbled a few words under his breath, and the three walked back toward the castle. The rest of the class simply stared at Hermione, still struggling to get free of Ron, until Diana gave them all a dangerous glare and they quickly left.

"Mione-kun, that was _awesome_!" praised Yugi, looking ready to laugh.

"Do it again," dared Marik, a huge grin on his face.

But Hermione didn't listen the two's praise: she only glared at where Malfoy had been standing with nothing short of loathing.

"Harry, you better kick his ass real good in that Quidditch final, or else I'll kick it so hard he'll be sent to St. Mungo's for a _replacement_."

* * *

It seemed that Hermione had definitely cracked a little. Sometimes she acted so unlike herself that Diana thought she had been replaced by an alien clone. Right after the surprise slapping of Malfoy, Hermione missed Charms class, even though she had been standing outside with her friends right before it. Then in one of the third years' final Divination classes, Hermione lost her temper with Trelawney when the professor looked into Harry's crystal ball and once again saw the Grim. 

"_Oh_, for goodness _sake_!" Hermione snapped rather loudly, "Not that _ridiculous_ Grim _again_!"

Trelawney raised her enormously magnified eyes to Hermione, for the first time with unmistakable anger. There was a hush throughout the class.

"I am sorry to say that from the moment you have arrived in this class, my _dear_, it has been _apparent_ that you do not have what it takes to be _successful_ in the noble art of Divination. I don't recall _ever_ meeting a student with such a _mundane_ mind…one so _withered_ with knowledge from books that it will _never_ understand or see the Unknown."

There was quiet. Ron, Diana, Harry or Yugi likely would've said something if they weren't so surprised at Hermione's outburst. Finally, Hermione crammed _Unfogging the Future_ back into her bag, pushed her chair aside so abruptly Ron nearly fell over, and strode over to the trapdoor and kicked it open so she could climb down the ladder out of the room and out of sight.

No one spoke. Then…

"Remind me _never_ to get her angry," said Ron.

But even though Hermione had quit Divination as of that day, she was still as busy as ever, and her friends were all very busy as well. Ron and the Japanese boys had taken over work on Hagrid's appeal along with the rest of their schoolwork, Harry was practicing Quidditch every single day now, and Diana was helping all of her friends at once while still looking up information on Black.

The worst part was that Diana's research into Black was fruitless, as everything she was looking at was the same as what she'd been looking at all year. The only source she hadn't tried was Professor Lupin, who she knew had been friends with Harry's parents and her mother, but never wanted to question. If she asked him about her father, he obviously would inform her aunt and the Ministry, and they certainly would prevent her from ever getting close to Black…the only way to learn information from him and keep the Ministry from learning what she was up to would be to scare Lupin into staying silent, and Diana respected him too much to do that.

Luckily Diana was distracted by her worries by the euphoria of the upcoming Quidditch Final of Gryffindor versus Slytherin. All of Gryffindor house was excited, since they hadn't won the Quidditch Cup in what seemed like forever.

The day of the Quidditch Final, Harry came down to the Great Hall with the rest of the Gryffindor team for a quick breakfast before the game, and was greeted by a chorus of applause from the Gryffindor table. He couldn't help but smile when he saw that the Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs were applauding for them as well.

Diana ran over and gave Harry a hug.

"Mione told me to tell you something," she told him seriously.

"What?" asked Harry, looking concerned.

"What she said about kicking Malfoy's ass…she _meant_ it," laughed Diana.

She gave Harry a noogie and tousled up his hair so that it was twice as messy as usual.

"Go get 'em, mate."

Harry grinned broadly at her. "Sure."

* * *

Hermione, Ron, Diana, Marik, Seto, Yugi, Ryou and Mokuba sat together in the stands as the Gryffindor team was announced. Marik and Mokuba waved a banner that read, _"Let the Lions Roar!"_, as Harry flew around the stands and slapped both Yugi's and Ron's hands before flying back around to rejoin the rest of the Gryffindor team in formation. 

The Slytherins then flew onto the field, which sparked a series of loud booing from three-quarters of the stands and a loud cheering and stomping of feet from the remaining Slytherin quarter. Lee Jordan was commentating, obviously very biased toward the Gryffindor side, but Diana thought his analysis of the Slytherin team (that they were a team mostly built on size and broom quality rather than talent) was dead on.

The game started with Gryffindor taking an early lead: the Gryffindor Chasers had definitely worked very hard at their practices and all that work had paid off. Understandably the Slytherins were not happy about Gryffindor getting such an early lead, and the game started to get very dirty.

After Angelina Johnson had scored a goal, the Slytherin Captain Marcus Flint whammed into her and later claimed he didn't see her. Then Montague, one of the Slytherin Chasers, swerved in front of Katie Bell to grab the Quaffle and instead grabbed her head, making Katie almost fall off her broom and drop the Quaffle so another Slytherin Chaser could grab it. Then the two Slytherin Beaters, Derrick and Bole, whacked both Bludgers at Oliver Wood, hitting him in the stomach one after the other.

"Those Slytherin bastards," growled Mokuba.

"_Mokuba_!" Seto reproached.

"_What_?"

"There's the Snitch, look!" pointed out Hermione excitedly, "And Harry's right on it! Come on, Harry!"

Marik looked through his binoculars at Harry, to notice that Malfoy was right behind him and stretching out his hand not toward the Snitch but toward Harry's broom.

"What the hell is Malfoy _doing_?" the Egyptian muttered to himself.

Malfoy grabbed the tail of Harry's Firebolt and pulled it back, making the broom too slow to bring Harry close enough to the Snitch to catch it. Harry tried to pull away, but by the time he did, Malfoy had achieved his goal: the Snitch had disappeared again.

Seto's mouth dropped. "THAT FILTHY, CHEATING SON OF A BITCH!"

Harry's friends weren't the only ones angry. Madame Hooch was beside herself, screeching about how depleted the tactic was; Lee Jordan was swearing madly into the megaphone, and beside him, McGonagall was shaking a finger in Malfoy's direction, shouting furiously and not even bothering to stop her hat from falling off her head.

Alicia Spinnet took the Gryffindor penalty, bringing the score to 70-20. Later Angelina threw a spectacular shot and brought it to 80-20. If Harry caught the Snitch, Gryffindor would win the Cup…

The next thing Diana knew, Malfoy was diving toward the Snitch.

_/Oh no/_ she thought, _/Come on, Harry, stop him…catch up with him…/_

Harry must have been psychic or something, for he noticed Malfoy heading toward the Snitch just after Diana did, and pelted after him, slowly gaining on him…he was at his ankles…he was level…

"COME ON, HARRY!" yelled Ron.

Harry pushed Malfoy's arm out of the way, and…

"_HAI_!" Yugi shouted, "HAI, HARRY-KUN! YOU WON!"

Harry pulled out of the dive, holding the Snitch above his head, and the stadium roared with applause.

Diana jumped out of her seat, over the stands and onto the field and ran over to her friend as he landed on the field. She nearly tackled him, laughing like crazy and shaking a triumphant fist in the air. She could see Harry had tears in his eyes, likely overwhelmed by the noise and excitement.

Wood flew over, seized Harry around the neck and sobbed unrestrainedly into his shoulder. Alicia, Angelina and Katie were screaming, "_WE WON THE CUP! WE WON THE CUP_!" Fred and George were shouting some of the Gryffindor cheerleaders' classic cheers and grinning identical broad grins.

All of the Gryffindors poured out onto the stadium, yelling and cheering and singing jubilantly. Harry was hoisted onto the shoulders of the crowd and carried all around the stands.

Diana could hear Hagrid shouting, "Ya beat 'em, Harry, ya beat 'em! Wait 'til I tell Beaky!" Percy ran toward Diana and the two jumped up and down in exhilaration, all dignity and sense forgotten. McGonagall was sobbing even harder than Wood and wiping her eyes with an enormous Gryffindor flag. The Japanese boys helped bring Harry down off the shoulders of the crowd and they all glomped him in unison. Ron and Hermione were hugging each other and smiling, as Dumbledore presented the huge Quidditch Cup to the Gryffindor team.

If the dementors had been there and Harry had tried to curse them back right then, Diana would've bet anything that he would've created the best Patronus in the history of the world.

* * *

**Bakura: (still singing) _TROGDOOOOOOORRRR! TROGDOOOOORRRR! _**

**Yugi: Is it just me, or did that seem short?**

**Kitty: It was a little, actually. Then again, the last chapter was longer than anything I'd written in a while and in the book, this part is much longer since it's through Harry's perspective as a Seeker.**

**Lina: (comes into the room) What's this I hear from Atem that you wrote four chapters in three days?**

**Kitty: I finished the four upcoming chapters for this fic in these last three days.**

**Lina: (gawks) _Seriously_? Whoa.**

**Kitty: I won't post 'em all at once, though...I don't want to go too fast for people still on Easter vacation: I want their feedback on each of the chapters. That, and I can use this time to make sure all of these upcoming chapters are juuuuuuuust right.**

**Yugi: I guess no one can blame you for that, even if they and we are dying to know what happens.**

**Kitty: (smiles) You're sweet. But hey, all of the chapters after this one are wonderfully awesomeness. (is jumping up and down at how wonderful they are) So much suspense and surprise! I hope everyone will like them!**

**Lina: (mutters up her breath so Kitty can't hear) Hey, peeps...let me let you in on a secret...the more, well-constructed reviews you send, the more Kitty wants to update. That girl practically _lives _off feedback...so when you can, R&R for her, okay?**

**Kitty: Lina, what are you saying to the audience?**

**Lina: Oh, nothing! (to the audience) Bye, y'all! R&R!  
**


	16. Chapter 15: Exams and an Execution

**Kitty: (pouts) Last day of Spring Break...just thought I'd update again today since tomorrow onward will be so very, very busy for our school's yearly Children's Play.**

**Yugi: What is the play again?**

**Kitty: It's called _"A Sheep in Wolf's Clothing,"_ and it was written by my friend Shanna. It involves a wolf talking about all the misconceptions in fairy tales, making wolves look like the bad guys when they're really innocent of any crimes.**

**Atem: And what are you?**

**Kitty: I play two parts: I'm one of the three little pigs...and Little Bunny Foo Foo. (grimaces)  
**

**Lina: (stares) LITTLE BUNNY...FOO FOO? (roars with laughter)**

**Kitty: (glares at her Yami) I have to wear _pink _for that role, you know...if there is a God up there, he must be looking down on me and laughing. (imitates God) "Hahaha! That silly little Athiest redhead has to wear the color of Hell, haha!" (sweatdrop)**

**Yugi: (sticks his tongue out) Evil pink. (looks at the audience) R&R!**

**

* * *

**_**Chapter Fifteen:**_

_**Exams and an Execution**_

It seemed like Gryffindor would celebrate their winning of the Quidditch Cup for the rest of eternity, but of course, exams don't slow down for any student, no matter how excited or exhausted they may be.

A few days before exam week, Harry received a letter from Hagrid that told them that the appeal was set for the sixth, the day they finished their exams, and that the trial was going to take place on the Hogwarts grounds.

Most of the exams Diana took were rushed and made up of guesses since she had missed so many classes in her conquest of information about Black all year, but she knew she would pass anyway and therefore didn't pay much mind. The only exam she actually studied for was Lupin's, and she was surprised to find his exam was a bit more interesting than the others. He had constructed an obstacle course out on the Hogwarts grounds, in which they would have to wade across the deep pool of a grindylow, cross a series of potholes full of Red Caps, squish their way across a patch of marsh while ignoring the misleading directions of a hinkypunk and last climb into an old trunk and battle with a new boggart.

"_Wonderful_, Diana," praised Lupin as Diana climbed out of the trunk after battling the boggart, "Full marks."

Diana grinned broadly. "That was fun…can I do it again?"

Lupin laughed. "Maybe after your classmates finish."

Harry and Marik too received full marks: Ron was suckered in by the hinkypunk, Yugi almost got skewered by one of the Red Caps and Hermione came out of the trunk screaming before she could fight the boggart.

"_P-P-Professor McGonagall_!" Hermione cried, pointing at the trunk and looking close to tears, "Sh-she said I failed _everything_!"

It took Diana quite a while to calm Hermione down before they headed back up to the castle together. Ron was still tempted to laugh at Hermione's boggart, but Marik and Yugi both shot him looks that told him to hold back his amusement.

On the way up to the castle, however, they ran into Cornelius Fudge, the Minister of Magic. Diana had only met him once before, when he had told her the story of her mother, and had seen him last when he took Hagrid to Azkaban last year, so she couldn't help but have mixed feelings toward him.

"Oh hello there, Harry!" he greeted, "Just had an exam, I expect?"

"Yes," answered Harry, "Defense Against the Dark Arts."

"Oh…very good, very good," said Fudge, before casting an eye on the lake and adding, "Such a _lovely_ day…pity, pity…"

"_Pity_?" Hermione repeated, "_Why_, sir?"

Fudge sighed deeply. "I'm here on an unpleasant mission…the Committee for the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures required a witness to the execution of a mad hippogriff-"

"With all due respect, sir, Buckbeak is _not_ mad," interjected Diana coldly, "And you _won't_ have to witness an execution if he wins the appeal."

Fudge probably would've replied were it not for the arrival of two wizards from the castle doors behind him. One of them was so ancient he looked like a flower withering on a windowsill: the other was tall and strapping with a thin black mustache, and was running his thumb down the blade of a shining ax on his belt.

Diana and Ron both opened their mouths to speak, but Hermione grabbed them by the arm and pulled them into the castle, and Harry, Yugi and Marik followed behind them, although all three of them were very careful to give the executioner each a glare as they went by.

* * *

It was time for the Gryffindor and Ravenclaw third years' Divination exam. Trelawney was seeing each of the students individually for their exams, and the students waited in the hallway below her classroom, watching each of their classmates who finished depart down the hallway and anxiously awaiting their turn. 

Seto came down through the trapdoor and rolled his eyes.

"Well?" asked Ron, "Did you fail?"

"I had hoped I _would_," snorted Seto, "But I think she actually _believed_ all that crap I told her."

"You made everything up?" Yugi inquired with a grin.

"Actually, I just imitated your Yami's old lectures to me about my Egyptian past," Seto said coolly.

The Brits laughed, and Yugi was having trouble keeping his face straight.

"Run before my Yami comes out and kills you, Kaiba-kun," he advised.

Seto chuckled before walking down the hallway and calling back, "I'll go check up on Mione-kun! Maybe she's heard about what happened with Hagrid-san's case."

"See you later, Seto," Diana called back.

"Diana Randall," the misty voice of Trelawney spoke from overhead.

Diana sighed, climbed up the ladder to open the trapdoor and stepped into the Divination room.

The curtains were closed and the fireplace was alight with flames, so it was both hot and dark, which is always an unpleasant combination. Trelawney was sitting across from a single table now set up in the center of the room that was empty except for a tablecloth and a single crystal ball.

"Good day, my dear," she greeted quietly, "If you will kindly gaze into the Orb…just take your time…and then tell me what you see within it."

Diana's mind rushed back to the symbolism section of her Divination book, trying to think of some bogus prediction in the symbols…

But before she could make up something, she realized something in the crystal ball was _moving_.

Was she actually _seeing_ something?

She realized that the thing within the crystal ball was…

"A face," Diana murmured.

"Indeed?" asked Trelawney, making some notes on a piece of parchment perched upon her knees, "Is it familiar to you?"

It was indeed. It was the face of Roth Rozene.

"Yes."

"Is it a friend of yours?" inquired Trelawney.

"Sort of."

Roth had a very solemn look on his face…then, the next thing Diana knew, he was gone, and in his place were the hieroglyphs of Bakura and Artemis… Her mind, almost involuntarily, thought of his words to her.

_**"Do not let yourself be consumed by the very thing that brought Artemis and almost Marik to their doom, no matter who you meet or what you hear…"**_

"What do you see now?"

"A…a picture of my friend…"

The hieroglyphs disappeared to be replaced with a picture of Sirius Black Diana had seen in the Daily Prophet…then the picture of Harry's parents' wedding…the torn picture of her mother playing in the snow…

"And?"

"Sirius Black…" Diana could barely concentrate on Trelawney as Roth's words again pounded in her ears.

_**"Do not let yourself be consumed by the very thing that brought Artemis and almost Marik to their doom, no matter who you meet or what you hear…"**_

_/What the hell does he mean?…/_ Diana asked herself.

Faces started appearing out of nowhere…Harry, Ron, Hermione, Marik, Seto, Yugi, Bakura, Kara, Mokuba, Melisanne, Kitty… She saw herself, covered with the blood of the little girl she'd killed all those years ago…

"Keep going, dear. What do you see?"

"B-blood…"

Too much at once…it was as if the whole room and crystal ball had disappeared. The images and words were only inside her mind now…

**"_Do not let yourself be consumed by the very thing that brought Artemis and almost Marik to their doom…"_**

Artemis's face appeared, smirking a fanged smirk of triumph. She had won…she had won whatever it was she wanted…

"Dear? Are you alright?"

**"_Do not let yourself be consumed…do not let yourself be consumed…"_**

The words echoed in her ears, louder and harder each time. Roth held up his Millennium Key…the Millennium symbol on it flashed gold…

"_AHHHHHHHH_!"

Diana found herself on the floor, sweating most profoundly. Somehow she knew nothing she did brought about this vision. No…it was Roth sending her a message…somehow he knew she was close to being consumed by this…_thing_ that Artemis and Marik were once prey to.

_/But what is it?…/_ wondered Diana, _/What brought Marik and Artemis to their doom?…/_

"Miss Randall? My dear, are you alright?"

Diana had forgotten Trelawney was there. Upon remembering, she wiped the sweat from her face and stood up.

"I'm sorry, Professor, but I'm not feeling well," she said in a deathly calm tone, "If you'll excuse me…" 

"My dear, you have not finished your exam," Trelawney protested, looking worried, reproachful and curious, all at the same time, "Could you at least tell me what you saw in the crystal ball so I may give you marks-?"

"Professor, I _must_ insist," Diana replied, and her tone of voice was enough to warn Trelawney not to argue further.

With that, Artemis's Heir pulled the trapdoor open, headed down the ladder and never told her friends what happened in Trelawney's room.

* * *

Diana was waiting for Harry, who was the last of the class to take his exam, before the two were to head down toward the Great Hall to meet up with the others and learn of the result of Buckbeak's appeal. 

To her surprise, Harry came down the ladder looking as if he'd just been electrocuted.

"What's going on, Harry?" the redhead asked in concern.

"T-Trelawney just told me…the Dark Lord's going to rise again…"

"_What_?"

"She just…I dunno, she started talking all deep and strange…and said that Voldemort's most loyal servant is going to go back to him tonight and help him rise to power…"

Diana's face went pitch white. "Are you _sure_?"

"Yeah," replied Harry, "And then she went back all normal-like and didn't remember any of it."

Diana stood there, dumbstruck. Was it actually possible Trelawney had made a _real_ prediction?

"Come on," she murmured to Harry, "Let's go find the others."

* * *

When Diana and Harry had come down to meet the others, they learned that Buckbeak had lost his appeal. According to a letter from Hagrid, the execution would take place outside his house at sunset, and there was nothing they could do to stop the execution. 

The whole time her friends spoke of how they were going to grab Harry's Invisibility Cloak from under the one-eyed witch and see Hagrid Diana was silent. She realized that this night was the last chance she had to capture Black…if what Trelawney said was true, then Black would set out to rejoin Voldemort that very night. And the only chance she had at learning enough about him to figure out where he was hiding was Professor Lupin. She had no choice: to catch Black, she would have to miss seeing Hagrid, trick her friends and threaten her favorite teacher.

Diana thought the angriest thought she could muster and, to her relief, her eyes flashed red.

"Oh _no_!" said Hermione, who noticed the red glimmer first.

"What?" Diana pretended to be naïve, while thinking the same angry thought to make her eyes flash again.

"Artemis," moaned Ron, "She's coming out tonight."

Diana acted like she was crushed. "Oh, of all _nights_! I _can't_ see Hagrid if _Artemis_ is coming out!"

"You better head up to the Hospital Wing, Dare-kun," advised Yugi, "Don't worry: Harry, Ron, Mione-kun and I'll go see Hagrid, and we'll tell him why you're not there…I'm sure he'll understand."

"Give Buckbeak a pet for me, Harry," Diana said, this time not having to act since she was very sad she would never see the hippogriff again, before getting up from her seat at the Gryffindor table, "It'll be the last time I have a chance of it."

"I'll walk with you, Dare-chan," said a newly-appeared Bakura, "I got nowhere to go…and if my Hikari does…oh well."

"No _really_, Bakura, you don't need to-" Diana tried to protest, but he didn't listen, and instead walked down the hall with her.

They walked in silence for a while, Diana every-so-often trying unsuccessfully to shake Bakura off by assuring him she was alright.

Then, right as the two were passing the stairway up to the Defense Against the Dark Arts corridor and toward the Hospital Wing, Bakura realized Diana was no longer at his side.

He turned around, to see Diana standing perfectly still a few steps back, her eyes covered in shadow.

"Dare-chan? Are you okay?"

Diana looked up at him very slowly, and he was surprised to see how blank her eyes were.

"I'm sorry," she whispered.

And before Bakura could ask what she meant, she had raised her wand, cried "_Stupefy_!" and knocked him out.

* * *

**Bakura: (is pitch white)**

**Yugi: (dumbstruck) Dare _stunned _him? _DARE _stunned _BAKURA_? WHAT THE HELL IS THIS WORLD COMING TO?**

**Kitty: Shocker, ain't it? But hey...it needed to be done.**

**Bakura: (looks at Diana hurtly) You don't like me anymore?**

**Diana: _What_? Of _course _I like you! Don't be-**

**Kitty: AHEM. If you need to handle this, Dare, I give you permission to go outside. Right now... (pulls on some bunny ears halfheartedly) I have to practice for my role as a pink bunny.**

**Lina: (is still rolling with laughter on the floor)**

**Atem: R&R, folks! **


	17. Chapter 16: Girl, Meet Dad

**Yugi: Sorry we haven't gotten to all your reviews yet, guys. Even as I type, Kitty is heading out to perform the Drama Club's first performance of Shanna's play...and Kitty refuses to come out of the dressing room.**

**Kitty: (from behind the door of the dressing room) YOU GUYS WILL LAUGH AT ME!**

**Atem: No, we won't, Kitty!**

**Lina: Yes, we will.**

**Atem: Well, yeah, we will...but come out anyway!**

**Kitty: HELL NO!**

**Yugi: (sighs) We just thought it'd be best to post one of her chappies for you guys so you guys wouldn't be kept hanging for too long. Kitty, will you just tell the reviewers the warning for this chapter? You promised Claire.**

**Kitty: Oh, yeah. (ahem) GUYS (and Claire, who was the one who first told me to tell her when something like this was happening), THERE IS A HUGE SHOCKER IN THIS CHAPTER! Just warning you as a cushioning for when you possibly have a heart attack. **

**Lina: (crossing her arms) Hold onto your hats and R&R!**

**

* * *

**  
_**Chapter Sixteen:**_

_**Girl, Meet Dad**_

Remus J. Lupin was sitting his office, brooding over an oddly familiar piece of parchment on his desk, when, to his surprise, there was a knock on his office door.

"Who is it?" he called.

The door opened, to reveal a Gryffindor girl who since the beginning of the year had had a particular fondness for his classes.

"Diana?"

"I need to talk to you about something, Professor," Diana stated.

Lupin blinked in surprise, but he said, "Come on in," and beckoned her inside.

Diana walked past him and into the office, and Lupin closed the door.

"Now…" the professor turned toward his third year pupil, "What exactly do you need to talk to me about?"

Diana was not looking at him: instead, she had her back to him and her arms crossed, talking to his reflection in the tall window.

"To get to the point," she spoke in a business-like tone, "Sirius Black."

Lupin's eyes seemed to flicker with fear: Diana couldn't be sure, though, as when she looked closer, the fear was gone.

"What about him?" Lupin asked, obviously trying to sound impassive.

Diana turned around slowly to look at him. "Tell me the truth…is Sirius Black my father?"

There was a silence. Then Lupin struggled to speak.

"I…I can't tell you that."

"Then who _can_?" Diana shouted, "I've been searching for answers for _years_, but no one will give them to me!"

"There's a _reason_ for that, Diana," insisted Lupin.

"Everyone always says that," snarled Diana, "They say they need to _protect_ me…I don't _need_ protection, I'm not a little kid anymore! I've faced Voldemort twice in two years! And you're the only one left who can tell me, _so tell me_!"

Lupin looked at Diana carefully for a moment before he spoke again.

"I _want_ to tell you, Diana, _really_ I do…but I'm not going to risk your safety to do that."

Diana looked back at Lupin, and her eyes flashed red.

"Don't make me do this, Professor," she said quietly, "I respect you a lot, with you helping Harry with the dementors and being my mum's friend. I already had to stun Bakura to have the chance to learn the truth…I _don't_ want to hurt you if I don't _need_ to." 

Lupin's tawny-brown eyes widened: he obviously knew what Diana was planning to do.

"Diana, don't let her out," he whispered, "I know how much you fear her-"

"I fear the thought of my own father murdering Harry _more_!" hissed Diana, "I need your statement to confirm my evidence. If you don't tell me out right, I will have no choice but to force the answer out of you."

Lupin stared at Diana, looking terrified: Diana could tell, however, that he wasn't afraid of what Artemis might do…but then, what _was_ he afraid of?

"I cannot let you become Artemis," the professor murmured, "Not for _my_ safety, but for _yours_. Even the Ministry would understand that…fine, Diana. I'll tell you the truth…but you _must_ hear my whole story through…and you must promise not to let Artemis take control over you."

Diana and Lupin held eye contact for a moment, before the redhead finally nodded, to show she agreed to his terms.

"You should already know, of course," started Lupin, "That Harry's father, your mother, Sirius Black, Peter Pettigrew and I were friends at school. We were all in Gryffindor, and the best friends anyone ever knew. But when Sirius and your mother were forced into marriage by their equally unforgiving Pureblood families, they were miserable. Carly and Sirius had very little in common as a whole. Carly was a very calm, serious, intellectual Gryffindor, always doing the right thing, even if she had to fight back against her friends and family to do so. Sirius was clever also, but he was always looking for excitement and often played vicious, yet hilarious, pranks on his enemies…you're talking about someone who practically _searched_ for an excuse to take someone on his flying motorcycle-"

"So they were _forced_ to have me by their heritage, and in anger, Black left my mother to _die_," spat Diana.

"Diana, you _told_ me you would hear the whole story through," Lupin said quietly, "I'm not done yet."

Diana shot the professor an annoyed look: then she nodded curtly again to tell him to continue.

"Sirius was already in love with someone else when he married Carly," explained Lupin, "And vice-versa. About two years before she died, Carly spent a night with her love, and the two discussed a plan that would allow them to be together. They would leave the country and change their names, and Sirius would be called a widower and could marry his love…anyone who became known as _'missing'_ back then could automatically be assumed dead. Carly was already in danger with the Death Eaters at the time…if her plan succeeded, then she and her love, as well as Sirius and the rest of their friends, would remain safe. But that night of discussion the two lovers spent together…turned into something more. A few weeks later, Carly realized she was pregnant. She told us the news when we were all together, and although she never said it in words, we could _tell_ it wasn't Sirius's child. Sirius told Carly it didn't matter: their plan would just have to be shoved down the road so that the child's future could be determined. The child was born on a rainy night in October…the father couldn't be there, for reasons of his own, so Sirius stayed with Carly, along with her twin sister Guinevere. Sirius suggested the name Vega and Gwen suggested Aurora…but Carly ended up settling on the name Diana…it had been the father's favorite, she said. So the child was named Diana Black, using her supposed father's last name. It was later discovered that this child was chosen as the heir of an evil Egyptian sorceress-"

"Artemis," inserted Diana.

Lupin nodded. "Your father was horrified at having to cause you pain, as according to records, his blood mixing with Carly's is what made Artemis choose you. Your blood determines what you start out as in life, and that blood was almost an _exact_ match of what _Artemis_ started out with…a human mother and a half-breed father, both of whom you barely knew."

"Her father was a _vampire_," realized Diana, "So my father…was one too?" 

"No," Lupin sighed, "Your father was the _other_ creature called a half-breed, a werewolf…and that gave your father no rights to take care of you. You see, Diana, half-breeds are banned by the law from taking care of children without wizard or witch involvement…the worry is that the child will be harmed by the half-breed while he or she is dangerous. So when Carly was killed and Sirius was accused with her murder, your father couldn't fight for rights to take care of you. Only a few people knew, of course, that you were _not_ Sirius's child, so as to protect you from prejudice as a Black, your name was changed to Randall, you were placed in your aunt's care and your real father was barred from seeing you. The Ministry also took another step to keep you from asking questions about your past by making up the tale your father had left Carly right before Voldemort killed her…they didn't realize, of course, that the story would only complicate things."

"Who knew about this?" Diana could barely find her voice.

"Dumbledore," answered Lupin, "Arthur and Molly Weasley. Cornelius Fudge. Your Aunt Gwen. The Potters had known, as well as Peter Pettigrew, but you know they died at Sirius's hands as well."

Diana's breathing was very slow and deep now as she struggled not to cry. _/Everything that I've been told…it's all a lie. Everything I learned has been from people who believed a lie…/_

"You _still_ haven't told me who my father is," she said abruptly, "You've been very careful not to say his name."

Lupin looked at Diana closely, before closing his eyes.

"I am."

Diana felt as if her heart had stopped beating: she only could stare. _/Lupin…? He's…he's my…/_

"_You_?" she whispered.

Lupin nodded as he opened his eyes, worried for her reaction. "Yes."

Diana didn't speak. She didn't know what to say, even though her mind was abuzz with various thoughts.

_/It all makes sense now…that's why he was hesitant to tell me the truth…not to protect me from Black, but because he was worried about what I would think. He wanted to tell me the whole story first before telling me that it was him so I wouldn't forget my promise and let Artemis out…he didn't want me to become the thing I both despise and fear. He must know a lot about that, if he's a werewolf…/_

The silence went on for quite a while before Lupin spoke again.

"So? Are you still determined to kill me?"

Diana at first was silent: after a few minutes, she said, "I don't know anymore."

She swallowed, and then continued.

"For everything I've been told my whole life…I _should_ still want to kill you. But for everything you've done this year…helping Harry with the dementors…teaching us better than any teacher before you…I don't know _what_ to think."

Diana looked at Lupin carefully. "You've never done _any_ of the things the Ministry said you did?"

"Never," Lupin answered firmly, "I would never have done anything to harm Carly or you."

"But why didn't you _tell_ me?" asked Diana, "Why didn't _anyone_ tell me?"

"The Ministry was very careful to make sure you wouldn't learn the truth from other people," replied Lupin, "They told Gwen and me that if either of us tried to tell you the truth, you'd be sent to an orphanage and neither of us would be able to see you."

"So they _threatened_ you," Diana said coldly.

"They _saw_ it as a _precaution_," explained Lupin, but he didn't seem to care for the reason either.

"Disgusting."

Diana's eyes had been wandering around the room this whole time, and just this moment her eyes recognized the piece of parchment on her professor and father's desk.

"_The Marauder's Map_!" she realized.

It wasn't just the ordinary piece of parchment he had confiscated anymore: the Map's passages and halls were all there and covered by the little moving dots of people.

"_How_…how did you…?" Diana could barely ask Lupin how he figured out how to use the map.

Lupin chuckled. "Oh, I've known how to work this Map for a long time, Diana. I had a sneaking suspicion you and your friends would be going to see Hagrid…and my guess was pretty close, wasn't it?"

Diana couldn't help but smile as her eyes found her friends leaving the area of the Map labeled _"Hagrid's Hut."_ It was then she noticed another little dot near Ron that shouldn't have been there.

"Uh…Professor, I wouldn't trust this Map too much," she told him, "It's malfunctioning."

"Why do you say that?" Lupin seemed surprised.

"I see dead people," answered Diana.

Lupin looked over her shoulder at the Map, and indeed saw what she meant. Next to the dot labeled _"Ron Weasley"_ was another dot labeled _"Peter Pettigrew."_

There was a silence.

"The Marauder's Map never lies," said Lupin at last.

Diana looked up at him, to see a mixed expression of confusion and disbelief on his face.

"But Pettigrew's _dead_," Diana pointed out.

"Or _is_ he?" Lupin muttered, more to himself than to her.

Diana would've asked what he meant if her eyes hadn't caught sight of another dot moving toward her group of friends. Following the dots labeled _"Harry Potter,"_ _"Ron Weasley,"_ _"Hermione Granger," "Yugi Mutou," "Ryou Bakura,"_ and _"Peter Pettigrew,"_ was a fast moving dot labeled…

"_Sirius Black_," Diana whispered, her eyes widening.

Without another word, she ran out the door of Lupin's office.

"Diana, _wait_!" Lupin called after her, "It's not _safe_!"

But either she didn't hear him or wouldn't listen.

Lupin sighed. "_Great_…she got Carly's looks and Sirius's recklessness…"

And so he followed her path out of his office and toward the main door onto the grounds, unknowingly leaving the Marauder's Map, fully open and enchanted, on his desk.

* * *

Diana ran out onto the Hogwarts grounds. It was almost completely dark, so dark that in any other circumstance Diana would've lit up her wand so she could see. Right then, however, Artemis's Heir wasn't thinking sensibly: all she cared about was finding her friends. 

"HARRY?" she shouted, "MIONE? RON?"

There was no answer. She walked around in the dark, calling for them.

"YUGI? BAKURA? WHERE-_AHHH_!"

She had been hit in the face so hard she felt herself being shoved into the ground. For a split second, she wondered if it was the dog from all of her old nightmares, but when she felt around for her wand, pulled it out and cried, "_Lumos_!" she realized what hit her was not a dog, but a branch from the Whomping Willow.

"_Diana_!"

Diana turned to see Lupin running toward her.

"Are you alright?"

He touched her face to feel for bruises, and when his fingers touched her right eye, Diana felt a shot of pain and hissed like a snake.

"I _hate_ black eyes," she muttered, but she was smiling.

Lupin helped her up, looking concerned. "Head back to the castle, Diana…I'll handle this."

"No way in _Hell_!" growled Diana, "My _friends_ are down there!"

"You'd only be putting yourself in danger," Lupin argued.

"Oh, and _you_ wouldn't be in danger confronting a mass murderer? You need all the help you can get, and if you're not waiting for the dementors or other teachers to show up, then the only possible help you have is me."

Lupin still looked worried, so Diana added, "Hey, I know enough jinxes to make Percy Weasley look like an _amateur_, and he's _graduating_ this year. I can defend myself."

There was a pause in which the professor looked at his daughter pensively. Finally he sighed and said, "Alright, you can come. But stay close to me."

Diana nodded to tell him she agreed to his terms. Lupin walked toward the Whomping Willow and picked up a long stick on the ground. He stretched out his arm, and used the stick to poke a large knot on the Willow's trunk. To Diana's shock, the tree stopped moving, as though Medusa had just arrived and turned it to stone. Not a leaf twitched or shook.

Artemis's Heir gawked at Lupin. "How'd you know to do _that_?"

The professor gave Diana a smirk that made him look ten years younger. "I'll tell you later, perhaps. But for now…let's get moving."

Thinking of her friends, Diana reasoned this was probably the best idea, and followed Lupin as he walked closer to the trunk and underneath the now still branches, bent down and climbed through a gap in the roots.

"What are you doing?" asked Diana.

"Following your friends," replied Lupin, before he ducked into the hole and out of sight.

Diana was still hesitant, but she trusted Lupin enough to take his lead and climb through the gap in the roots after him.

* * *

**Yugi: (gawks) LUPIN? **

**Everyone Else: (looks as if they just went through a tornado)  
**

**Kitty: (still behind the door of the dressing room) Yep...told you it was a shocker. **

**Yugi: Whoa. That is weird, Kitty.**

**Lina: Who's the one who Sirius liked, though? **

**Kitty: What are you talking about?**

**Lina: Lupin said, "Sirius loved someone else when he married Carly, and vice-versa." Who did Sirius like?**

**Kitty: Like I'd tell you? That will be revealed later. Soon, but later.**

**Lina: (sticks her tongue out at the dressing room door) Stupid pink bunny.**

**Kitty: I AM NOT A BUNNY, I AM KITTY!**

**Lina: Then come out of there. Kitty hates being late, especially for a play she's performing in, so get your butt out here.**

**Kitty: I hate you. (comes out in a pink shirt, pink pants, a pink bowtie and bunny ears, nose and tail)**

**Yugi: AWWW! KITTEN, YOU LOOK SO CUTE! (glomps the pink bunny known as Kitty)**

**Everyone Else: (roaring with laughter) **

**Kitty: (pouts) I don't like this, Yugi-chan.**

**Yugi: (kisses her cheek) Hey, at least you don't have to look like this for too long. You just hop on stage for a few minutes, sing part of the Foo Foo song, and then leave to change into your next costume. You'll be fine.**

**Lina: (takes a billion pictures)**

**Kitty: HEY! LINA, WHAT ARE YOU DOING?**

**Lina: (smirks) Hey, I'll never have another opportunity like this to get such awesome blackmail!**

**Kitty: (steam coming out of her bunny ears)**

**Yugi: Don't worry, Kitty: I'll try and burn as many of those pictures as I can.**

**Kitty: Thanks, Yugi-chan.**

**Atem: (still laughing) R&R! **


	18. Chapter 17: The Marauders and the Spies

**Kitty: (is no longer in her pink bunny suit and is now typing on her computer)**

**Yugi: (pokes his head in) Hey, Kitten. **

**Kitty: Hey, Yugi-chan. How's it going with Cho?**

**Yugi: Well...we've tried everything to make her stop crying...**

**Kitty: But?**

**Yugi: But everything we think of reminds her of Cedric or Harry-kun. (sweatdrop)  
**

**Harry: (comes in) And if you don't do something, I think she might flood the house. **

**Kitty: (sighs) I think she's gone way past emo and in now in suicidal depression. Go on and get someone to drive her over to the hospital: nothing more we can do.**

**Yugi: Sure... (calls down the stairs) HEY! NOA! MIND DRIVING CHO TO THE HOSPITAL?**

**Noa: (annoyed) It'd be my pleasure! She's driving me absolutely mad!**

**Cho: (crying way too loud to be real) WAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! CEDRIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIC!**

**Noa: SHUT UP!**

**Harry: (sighs and sits down on the bed near where Kitty's typing) Gonna post the next chappie, Kitty?**

**Kitty: Yeah...wow, only three days between these updates now. But hey, these next few chappies have very bad cliffies, so of course these peeps will be expected to want more.**

**Yugi: (nods and sits down next to Harry) That's true...and what kind of stuff will we learn in this chapter?**

**Kitty: Look at the chapter name and you'll know the major discovery of this chappie. **

**Yugi: (looks at it) Oh, so we'll learn about these Spy girls, huh?**

**Kitty: Yeah, sorta.**

**Harry: Sorta? What's the "sorta" for?**

**Kitty: Just read the chapter and see for yourself.**

**Cho: WAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!**

**Noa: SHUT THE HELL UP AND GET INTO THE FUCKING CAR! **

**Harry: (sweatdrop) Er...R&R, guys!**

**

* * *

**  
_**Chapter Seventeen:**_

_**The Marauders and the Spies**_

The next thing Diana knew she was in a tunnel, and she and Lupin were walking down it, only guided by the lights of their wands. After a while of walking, they saw some light up ahead that signaled the end of the tunnel.

At this end was a room that looked like it had been subject to a tornado many years ago and never had anyone enter it since. Paper was peeling from the walls, brownish stains covered the floor, every piece of furniture was smashed and all of the windows were boarded up.

The boarded windows made Diana realize…

"We're in the Shrieking Shack," she murmured to herself.

"Indeed."

Diana looked at Lupin as he spoke and noticed he had a brooding look on his face. She would've asked him how he knew that the gap in the Whomping Willow's roots led to the Shrieking Shack, but a scream from upstairs caught her attention and made her forget her question.

"WE'RE UP HERE! SIRIUS BLACK…_QUICK_!"

"_MIONE_!" Diana shouted and, not taking any second to think of the consequences, she ran up the stairs toward the source of her friend's scream. Lupin ran after her, trying to pull her back, but the Gryffindor witch gave him no heed as she shoved open the door to the room upstairs.

Hermione, Yugi and Bakura were sitting on the floor next to Ron, who had his leg out at a sickly angle, and Harry was pointing his wand right at Sirius Black, crumpled on the floor with Hermione's cat Crookshanks settled on his chest.

"_Dare_!" gasped Harry.

Lupin came around in front of Diana. "Harry, lower your wand!"

He obeyed, but only half-heartedly. Lupin moved into the room, not taking his eyes off of Black.

Diana ran over to Harry and pulled him into a hug.

"Thank _Merlin_ you're okay!" she murmured, before pulling away from him and saying, "Don't _ever_ scare me like that again, you hear me?"

"Well, don't lie about Artemis coming out next time!" Harry replied, looking equally worried, "Do you have _any_ idea how _scared_ Bakura was when we found him? I was _too_, as a matter of fact…"

"Sorry," Diana sighed, "It was a mistake. But what Trelawney said to you-"

But Lupin spoke before she could finish her explanation.

"Where is he, Sirius?"

Diana looked at the professor in surprise. Who was he _talking_ about?

Black at first didn't make any recognition that he'd heard Lupin's question, until, at last, he raised a hand and slowly pointed at Ron. Diana looked at Ron questioningly, but he didn't seem to understand this action any better than she did.

"B-but then…" stammered Lupin, staring at Black so intently it was as if he were trying to read his mind, "Why hasn't he _revealed_ himself before now? Unless…" Lupin's eyes suddenly widened as though he just thought of something he couldn't believe he hadn't realized before, "Unless _he_ was the one…unless it was a _bluff_…you two switched without _telling_ me?"

Then, very slowly, Black nodded.

"Professor," Harry interrupted, "W-_what's_…?"

He never finished his question, for what the professor did next made his words die in his throat. Lupin lowered his wand, still gazing fixedly at Black, before he seized his hand, pulled him to his feet so Crookshanks jumped to the floor and embraced him like a brother.

Diana could do nothing but stare. Yugi gasped in horror.

"_I DON'T BELIEVE IT_!" screamed Hermione.

Lupin let go of Black and looked at her. The bookworm had jumped to her feet and was pointing at Lupin, wild-eyed.

"You…_you_…!"

"Hermione-"

"…_You_ _and__him_!"

"Hermione, calm down-" 

"I didn't _tell_ anyone!" Hermione shrieked, "I've been _covering_ for you-"

"Hermione, listen to me, please!" said Lupin, "I can explain-"

"I _trusted_ you!" Harry shouted, his voice breaking with all of his anger, "And all the time you've been his _friend_!"

"You're wrong," Lupin contended, "I _haven't_ been Sirius's friend, but I am _now_…let me explain-"

"_NO_!" cried Hermione, "Harry, don't trust him, he's been helping Black into the castle…he wants you dead too…_HE'S A WEREWOLF_!"

There was a ringing silence, in which everyone stared at Lupin.

"Mione, I hate to tell you this," Diana whispered, making everyone look at her, "But for once, you're way off the mark. Professor Lupin may be a werewolf, but I can tell you with full certainty that your other accusations are wrong."

"But how do you _know_ that?" Hermione asked her friend worriedly.

Diana gave her a wry smile. "Because you can expect a girl to be able to determine the character of her own father."

Ron's mouth dropped open like a large mouth bass. Yugi and Hermione looked shell-shocked. Harry stared.

"I'll explain everything later," she told them, "But for now…Ron needs to go see Madame Pomfrey."

"He's not going anywhere!" snarled Black, startling everyone in the room.

"_Peace_, Sirius," Lupin reproached, before looking at Diana and said, "Ron will get help soon…but right now, he should be here."

He then turned to Ron. "Could I have a look at your rat?"

"_Scabbers_?" Ron asked, "What's _he_ got to do with anything?"

_/How the hell is Scabbers alive?.../_ Diana asked herself, but decided to forget about it. Everything seemed so strange that rats coming back from the dead sounded perfectly logical.

Ron put a hand into his robes and pulled out a dirty, sick-looking and fearful Scabbers. Crookshanks stood up and hissed softly. Lupin gazed intently at Scabbers as he had with Black and looked like he was holding his breath.

"_What_?" snapped Ron, "What's so important about my rat?"

"That's _not_ a rat," croaked Black suddenly.

"What d'you _mean_…_'course_ he's a _rat_-"

"No, he's not," Lupin replied quietly, "He's a wizard."

"An Animagus," added Black, "By the name of Peter Pettigrew."

Diana's eyes widened at the memory of the dot on the Marauder's Map labeled _"Peter Pettigrew"_…but…wouldn't that mean that he was _alive_? No, that was ridiculous!

"You're both _mental_," said Ron.

Harry looked like he was thinking the same thing. "Peter Pettigrew's _dead_! Black _killed_ him twelve years ago!"

"I _meant_ to," Black growled, eying Scabbers savagely, "But little Peter got the better of me…NOT _THIS_ TIME, THOUGH!"

Black lunged toward Scabbers, but before he could get close enough to Ron, Diana had jumped in front of him and shoved him back.

"If you walk one _inch_ closer to my friend, I'll curse you into _oblivion_," the redhead snarled, pointing her wand dangerously at Black's neck.

Black stared down at Diana in silence, not fearfully, but with a kind of shocked recognition.

"_Diana_…?" he whispered.

Diana flinched at the criminal saying her name, but did not move her wand hand away from his throat.

Black looked back toward Lupin incredulously, and the professor nodded: then he looked back at Diana and slowly stepped away from Ron. Diana moved back toward Harry and tucked her wand back in her pocket, but still glared at Black as a kind of warning.

"I think we all should get an _explanation_ if we're going to stay in this room any _longer_," she commented coolly toward Lupin, "After all, if all that's going to happen while we're here is a mass murderer jumping on Ron to get at _Scabbers_, I don't feel very inclined to _stay_."

Lupin nodded. "I think you, Harry and Ron deserve an explanation."

He would've said more, but a loud creak interrupted him. The bedroom door had opened of its own accord. The students, Black and Lupin all stared at it, before the professor walked over to it and looked around the landing.

"No one there…"

"Oh _no_, this place really _is_ haunted!" moaned Ron.

"The Shrieking Shack was _never_ haunted," corrected Lupin, still looking at the door in a puzzled fashion, "The screams and howls the villagers used to hear came from _me_, not from _ghosts_."

He pushed his gray-brown hair out of his eyes, thinking, and then continued, "That's where all of this starts, actually…my becoming a werewolf. It happened when I was very small, and although my parents tried everything, there was no cure back then. Even the Wolfsbane Potion Professor Snape has been making for me is a very _recent_ discovery. Before only recently, I became a monster once a month, and with that in mind, me being able to attend Hogwarts seemed _very_ unlikely, since parents wouldn't want their children exposed to me… It was only because Dumbledore became Headmaster I was allowed in: he said that as long as we took certain precautions, there was no _reason_ I shouldn't come to school. The Whomping Willow was planted the year I came to Hogwarts, and it was _not_ by _coincidence_. This house, the tunnel leading to it, and the Willow were all placed here for my use. Once a month, I was smuggled out of the castle here to transform, with the Whomping Willow planted on the tunnel mouth so no one could come across me while I was dangerous. My transformations were terrible…I was separated from humans to bite, so I bit and scratched myself instead…I'm sure Diana understands how painful that is."

Diana nodded. She did indeed know how it felt.

"But apart from my transformations, I was happier than I'd ever been in my life…it was the first time I had friends, _wonderful_ friends…Sirius Black…Peter Pettigrew…your parents, Harry…Diana's mother. Of course, there was no chance my friends could _not_ have noticed I disappeared once a month. I made up all sorts of stories to try and keep my secret for fear that they would shun me once they learned the truth. But they, like you, Hermione, figured out the truth…and they _didn't_ shun me. Instead they became Animagi so that they could keep me company during my transformations as animals, as if they stayed with me as humans, I could bite them as well. James, Sirius and Carly, who transformed into animals that _couldn't_ be excused as pets, came under James's Invisibility Cloak, while the others went on ahead and made sure no one was there to catch them: then Peter would slip through the Whomping Willow's branches and touch the knot that freezes it, and the others would follow him down through the tunnel to meet me. Under their influence, I became less dangerous…my _body_ was still wolfish, but my _mind_ seemed to become less so while I was with them. Soon we started to leave the Shrieking Shack and roam the school grounds and village by night. Sirius and James transformed into such large animals that they could keep a werewolf in check, and believe me, if Carly had wanted to, they could've given me quite a few scars if need be. With all of the information we learned about the grounds, we were able to write the Marauder's Map, and signed it with our nicknames. I'm Moony, Sirius is Padfoot, and Peter is Wormtail…James was Prongs, Carly was Trickster, and Lily was Nightwing."

"Who was-?" Diana started to ask, but Hermione nudged her in the ribs to tell her to be quiet.

Lupin sighed deeply. "All this year I quarreled with myself about whether I should tell Dumbledore that Sirius was an Animagus…but I couldn't tell him. Why? I was too cowardly. If I had told him about everything we'd done at school, I would've had to admit both betraying his trust and making my friends transform into illegal and unregistered Animagi…and Dumbledore's trust means everything to me. He let me into Hogwarts as a boy and then gave me a job here, despite all of the prejudice and doubt towards me for being a werewolf…and so I convinced myself that Sirius was only using the Dark Arts he learned from Voldemort to get in, not being an Animagus. In a way, Snape's been right about me all along."

"_Snape_?" Black repeated harshly, for the first time in minutes looking away from Scabbers and up at Lupin, "What's _he_ got to do with anything?"

"He's teaching here too, Sirius," replied Lupin, before looking at the Brits, Yugi and Bakura, "Snape was at school with us. He fought hard against my appointment to the Defense Against the Dark Arts job, telling Dumbledore I'm not to be trusted, and he _has_ his reasons…you see, Sirius here played a trick on him which almost killed him, a trick which involved _me_…"

Black snorted derisively. "Served that slimeball right…sneaking around, trying to figure out what we were up to, hoping he could get us _expelled_-"

"Severus was _very_ interested in where I went every month," Lupin explained to the students, determinately ignoring Black's derision, "We were in the same year, and uh…well, we didn't _like_ each other very much."

"_That's_ the understatement of the _year_," scorned Black.

Lupin shot him a reproachful look, before continuing, "Severus _especially_ disliked _James_…_jealous_, I think, of his talent on the Quidditch field… Anyway, Snape had seen me crossing the grounds with Madame Pomfrey one evening toward the Whomping Willow, and Sirius thought it would be, er…_amusing_…to tell Snape all he had to do was prod the knot on the tree trunk with a long stick and he'd be able to get in after me. Of course, Snape tried it…if he had gotten as far as this house, he would've met a fully-grown werewolf…but James, who'd heard what Sirius had done, went after Snape and pulled him back, at great risk to his life…Snape still glimpsed me, though, at the end of the tunnel. Dumbledore forbade him from telling anyone, but from that time on, Snape knew what I was."

"Is that why Snape-sensei doesn't like you?" asked Yugi, "Because he thought you were in on the joke?"

"That's right," sneered a cold voice from the wall behind Lupin.

Severus Snape pulled Harry's Invisibility Cloak off of himself and Gwen Randall, and the two raised their wands toward Lupin and Black, respectively.

* * *

**Yugi: WHAT THE HELL? YOU STOPPED IT THERE?**

**Kitty: Hey, I told you there were bad cliffies. Gets people to anticipate the next chapters.**

**Yugi: BUT CLIFFIES ARE DEADLY! **

**Noa: (strolls into Kitty's room) Can't be any more deadly than listening to Cho Chang's whining...finally she's out of here.  
**

**Kitty: It's not really her fault, Noa: it's a mental condition, depression. She isn't doing it on purpose.**

**Noa: (snorts) Could've fooled me.**

**Harry: It kinda has to be a mental condition, though, in order for her to cry so consistantly. Hell, she cried even while we were together.  
**

**Kitty: Losing Cedric was a traumatic experience for her: she can't help it. I mean, Cedric was perfect, but there's nothing you can do about that.  
**

**Harry: (glares at Kitty)**

**Kitty: WHAT?**

**Noa: (rolls his eyes) R&R! **


	19. Chapter 18: The Final Spy Has Her Say

**Kitty: (crying on her bed with Yugi beside her)**

**Seto: (comes walking in) Hey, Kitty, do you mind explaining why Mokuba-? (sees Kitty crying) What the hell happened to her?**

**Yugi: She just learned she won't be able to see Claire in Florida.**

**Seto: (blinks) Oh yeah, Claire was going to fly over to Florida and Kitty was going to try and meet up with her there, wasn't she?**

**Yugi: Yeah...but her dad scheduled her to fly out to California before she can go to Florida and see Claire. **

**Seto: (eyes narrow) Didn't he know?**

**Yugi: No, but you'd have thought he'd ask! **

**Seto: True enough.**

**Kitty: (looks up dully) Now, what's going on, Kaiba?**

**Seto: You mind telling me why Mokuba is singing the Cotton Eye Joe song wherever he goes?**

**Kitty: I taught him the dance to go with it after he saw a music video for it on YouTube.**

**Seto: WHAT? DON'T YOU KNOW WHAT HAPPENS WHEN MOKUBA GETS INTO SOMETHING? HE BECOMES BLOODY OBSESSED WITH IT!**

**Kitty: (crosses her arms) Kinda like I do?**

**Seto: (sweatdrop) I see you're not the one to pity me in this situation, are you?**

**Kitty: Nope.**

**Noa: (comes in and sits down in Kitty's computer chair) Hey, Kitty...you wanna post the last chapter you wrote in advance?**

**Kitty: (buries her head into her pillow) You do it, Noa...I'm not feeling too well.**

**Noa: (posts it) Alright, everyone...R&R!**

**

* * *

**

_**Chapter Eighteen:**_

_**The Final Spy Has Her Say**_

Yugi gasped. Black leapt to his feet, and Gwen's wand followed him.

"Sirius Black, as the Auror I am, you are under arrest," Gwen stated, her jaw set and her brown eyes blazing with fury behind her black cats-eye glasses.

"Gwen, what are you doing here?" asked Lupin, looking from her to Snape.

"I _was_ here to speak with Professor Dumbledore, but I ran into Severus when I arrived in your office's fireplace," Gwen answered, "We saw a map of the school on your desk that showed us where all of you were. Now step aside, Remus…I need to tie Black up and bring him to the Ministry."

"Guinevere, do you _really_ think Lupin will do what you say?" snapped Snape, "He's been caught _red-handed_ with Black…you know as well as _I_ do what good friends they were…I always _knew_ he was helping Black in."

"Don't be _absurd_," muttered Gwen, "Remus came to protect the _students_-"

"You're letting your old friendships get in the way," hissed Snape, before looking at Lupin triumphantly, "Don't you realize that werewolves _can't_ be _tamed_? Even the Wolfsbane Potion can't do _that_…"

"You _fool_," whispered Lupin, "Is a schoolboy grudge enough to put an innocent man back inside Azkaban?"

_BANG_!

Snake-like cords burst from Snape's wand and twisted themselves around Lupin's mouth, wrists and ankles, making the werewolf overbalance and fall to the floor. Black moved angrily towards Snape, but Gwen raised her wand.

"Take another step and you _die_," she snarled.

Black froze. He looked at Lupin, and then at Gwen with a broken look on his face that clashed well with Gwen's look of hatred. Diana ran over to untie Lupin herself, but Snape prevented her.

"Stop right there, Randall," he warned coldly.

Diana's eyes flashed red. "Let him _go_, then! He has _nothing_ to do with Black…he only came after _me_! I saw the Map and came down here to rescue my friends! Professor Lupin isn't helping Black!"

"That remains to be _seen_," snarled Snape, "Do you _really_ think a little girl like you can understand something like this? Just leave it to the _adults_."

"You call yourself an _adult_?" Diana growled, her temper flaring at being called little, "You're acting more like a _child_ than any of us-"

"_SILENCE_! I WILL NOT BE SPOKEN TO LIKE THAT!" Snape shouted, looking madder than ever, "I've just saved your _neck_, Randall: you should be thanking me, and you decide of _all_ times to _mock_ me! You're just like your mother…too _witty_ to know when to _shut her mouth_! Now get out of the way and let me grab the werewolf. GET OUT OF THE _WAY_, RANDALL!"

"NO WAY IN _HELL_!" Diana yelled back.

But before Snape could take even one step toward her, several cries of "_Expelliarmus_!" rang throughout the room, and Snape was slammed into the wall and slid down it to the floor, knocked out.

Diana stared at Harry, Hermione and Bakura, who all had their wands raised, and then at her Aunt Gwen, who too held her wand out and had her arms crossed. They all had tried to disarm Snape at the same moment.

"You _shouldn't_ have done that," Gwen told them coldly, "You should've left him to _me_…he was being _rash_, but knocking him out was _not_ the answer."

Diana bent down and untied Lupin: he straightened up, smiled at Diana and said, "No, it probably wasn't, Gwen…but it was a nice sight to see."

Black smiled wryly: when Gwen noticed this, she snapped, "I'm not saying I won't _arrest_ you, Sirius…I only disarmed Severus because I was worried for Diana, _not_ because I wanted to hear your _lies_."

Black's smile vanished quickly as if he had been shoved back down to earth at the sound of her anger towards him.

"Hold on," Diana muttered, her eyes widening, "_Aunt Gwen_…"

Everyone stared at her as her face broke into an incredulous grin.

"I…I can't believe I didn't figure it out _sooner_…you're _Clawpaw_! _That's_ how you know these guys!"

Lupin smiled. "Yes, she is. I guess I didn't mention that, did I? Can't believe I forgot her…she was the _first_ Spy…"

"And now I'm the last," Gwen whispered as she turned away, "That was a long time ago, Remus…back we were all young and _stupid_…"

"That doesn't mean you have to _forget_ those times," Lupin replied.

Gwen gave Lupin a glare. "Just show me some proof for your story before I regret helping you."

"Very well," stated Lupin, turning to look at Ron, "Give me Peter, please."

Gwen looked him inquiringly, not having been there long enough to hear Pettigrew was supposedly alive. Ron clutched Scabbers closer to his chest.

"Come _off_ it," he muttered, "Are you trying to say Black broke out of Azkaban just to get his hands on _Scabbers_? I mean…how'd he know Scabbers was _here_? There are _millions_ of rats in the world: how does he know _Scabbers_ is the one he's after if he's been in Azkaban all these years?"

"That's a fair question," commented Gwen, before eying Black skeptically, "How do you answer _that_, Sirius?"

Not breaking eye contact with Gwen, Black put a hand inside his robes and took out a crumpled piece of paper. He smoothed it out and handed it to her.

Gwen stared at it. "This…this is from the Daily Prophet…"

"It's the picture of us in Egypt!" realized Diana, "The one Ron sent Harry, Mione and Yugi…see, here's Ron, and Marik, and me…"

"And _Scabbers_," said Bakura, pointing to the rat sitting on Ron's shoulder.

"How did you get this?" Gwen demanded.

"Fudge," answered Black, "When he came to inspect Azkaban, he gave me his paper. And there was Peter on the front-page…come on, Gwen, we've seen Peter transform who _knows_ how many times. The caption said the boy who owned Peter would be going back to Hogwarts, to where Harry was…"

"Merlin Almighty," Lupin breathed suddenly, looking from the picture to Scabbers and back again, "H-his front paw…"

"What about it?" asked Ron.

"He's got a toe missing," noted Black.

"Of _course_," Lupin said, "So _simple_…so _brilliant_…he cut it off himself?"

"Just before he transformed," Black nodded, "When I cornered him, he yelled for the whole street to hear that I'd betrayed James, Lily and Carly…then he blew apart the street with his wand behind his back, killed everyone within twenty feet of himself and sped away down the sewer."

"The biggest bit of Peter they ever _found_ was his finger, " Lupin murmured.

"But why was he so determined to fake his death?" snapped Harry, "Because he knew Black was about to kill him like he did my parents?"

Black was quiet for a moment: then he looked at Harry and croaked, "Harry…I never killed your parents…but I as good as did. James and Lily wanted to use me as their Secret Keeper, but I persuaded them to use Peter instead…I _thought_ it would help keep them _safe_…I'm to blame, I know it. When Carly died, no one knew who her Secret Keeper was…I was so scared it was Remus I didn't tell him about Peter being your parents' Secret Keeper. The night James and Lily died, I went to make sure Peter was still safe…but when I arrived at his hiding place, he was gone…yet there was no sign of a struggle. It didn't feel right. I got scared and set out for your parents' house…and when I got there…and saw the house destroyed…and their bodies…I realized what Peter must've done…what _I'd_ done…"

His voice broke. Gwen was looking at the floor as if she didn't want to believe what she was hearing: the whole time Black was speaking, she had been listening very closely although she had her back to him.

"_Enough_," Lupin said firmly, "There's only one way to prove what _really_ happened. Ron, _give me that rat_."

"What are you going to do?" Ron asked, looking at Scabbers nervously.

"Force him to reveal himself," answered Lupin, "Don't worry: if he really _is_ a rat, it won't hurt him."

Ron hesitated: then he held out Scabbers and Lupin took him. The rat squealed and squirmed in Lupin's hand, his fearful black eyes bulging.

"Ready, Sirius?" Lupin asked.

Black had already retrieved Snape's wand: he approached Lupin and the struggling Scabbers.

"Together?" he said quietly.

Lupin nodded, holding Scabbers tightly in one hand and his wand in the other. "On the count of three…one…two…_three_!"

Blue-white light erupted from both wands: Scabbers froze in midair, his small gray form twisting madly…then he hit the floor. There was another flash of light that forced the onlookers to shield their eyes, and then…

It was like watching a speeded-up film of a growing tree. A head was shooting up from the ground…limbs were sprouting…and a moment later, a man stood where Scabbers had been, cringing and wringing his hands.

He was a short man, barely taller than Yugi. His thin barely-blond hair was unkempt and there was a large bald patch on top of his head. He had the shrunken appearance of a plump man who had lost a lot of weight in very little time. His skin was grubby almost like Scabbers's fur, and his pointed nose and small, watery blue eyes gave Diana the impression he was a lot like the rat he'd once been. He looked around at them, his breathing fast and shallow, and his eyes darted to the door and the boarded-up windows.

"_Peter_," Gwen breathed, "I can't believe it."

"Long time no see, Peter," greeted Lupin coolly.

"R-Remus…G-Gwen…S-Sirius…" Even Pettigrew's voice reminded Diana of the squeaking rat he'd just been, "M-m-my friends…m-my old _friends_…"

Black's wand arm rose, but Gwen and Lupin seized him around the wrist in unison and forced him to lower it, each giving him a similar warning look.

"We've been having a chat, Peter," Lupin said to Pettigrew, "About what happened when Carly, James and Lily died. You probably missed most of it while you were squeaking around down there on the floor-"

"_Remus_," gasped Pettigrew, "You don't _believe_ him, do you? He tried to _kill_ me! He's come to try and kill me _again_! He killed Lily, Carly and James, and now he's trying to kill me too…Gwen, Remus, you've got to help me-"

"Depending on your cooperation in answering these last few questions, Peter, Sirius may be the _least_ of your worries," Gwen interrupted.

"Q-_questions_?" Pettigrew stammered, "I-I d-don't-"

"_First_," Gwen cut him off, "Why have you been a rat all this time, Peter? If _Sirius_ is the criminal, you had no _reason_ to hide from the law."

"He wasn't hiding from the _law_, Gwen," muttered Black, "He was hiding from old Death Eaters. I heard stuff in Azkaban…they all think he's dead, or he'd have to answer to _them_…after all, Voldemort met his downfall when he went to the Potters on _Peter's_ information… And plenty of Death Eaters _are_ still out there…if they ever got wind you were still _alive_, Peter…"

"Don't know…w-what you're talking about, Sirius…" Pettigrew squeaked, "G-Gwen…Remus…you…don't believe this _madness_-"

"I must _admit_, Peter, I have difficulty believing that an innocent man would want to spend twelve years as a _rat_," said Lupin evenly.

"Innocent, but _scared_!" squealed Pettigrew, "If the Dark Lord's supporters _were_ after me, it would be because I put one of their best men in Azkaban: the spy, Sirius Black!"

Black's face contorted. "How _dare_ you…_I_, a spy for Voldemort? When did _I_ ever sneak around people more powerful than myself? But _you_, Peter…I'll _never_ understand why I didn't suspect _you_ from the start…you always _loved_ friends who'd look after you, didn't you? It used to _us_…me, Carly and James…Even when I _suggested_ you to Lily and James, I thought it'd be the perfect bluff: Voldemort would never _dream_ that the Potters would choose a weak thing like _you_ as their Secret Keeper…Carly must have made you her Secret Keeper because she _trusted_ you, and who could _blame_ her? After all the times she used to _defend_ you, she _deserved_ to know you would fight just as hard for her…_instead you sold her out to Voldemort_!"

Pettigrew was shaking his head, mouthing noiselessly.

"Um…Sirius-san?" Yugi said hesitantly.

Black looked at him in surprise: he obviously had never spoken to a Japanese person before, particularly one who called him "Sirius-san."

"This _man_…_Pettigrew_," the King of Games continued slowly, "He's been sleeping in Harry-kun's and my dormitory for three years. If he was working for _Voldemort_, why hasn't he ever tried to hurt Harry-kun?"

"_There_!" gasped Pettigrew, pointed at Yugi in approval, "You _see_, Gwen, Remus? I've never harmed a _hair_ on Harry's head! Why _should_ I?"

"_I'll_ tell you why," Black spoke to Yugi while glaring dangerously at Pettigrew, "Because Peter never does _anything_ for _anyone_ unless he can see what's in it for _him_. Voldemort's been _hiding_ for thirteen years…Peter wasn't going to commit murder under Albus Dumbledore's nose for a wreck of a wizard who lost all his power…_no_, he'd wait until Voldemort was the biggest bully in the playground before rejoining him…why else would he find a wizard family to take him in? Perfect opportunity to listen for news until he knew it was safe enough to _rejoin_ him…"

Pettigrew opened and closed his mouth a few times wordlessly, as if he had forgotten how to speak. Bakura, however, still looked skeptical.

"Good reasoning," Ryou's Yami said coldly, "And yet, I _wonder_…if you _didn't_ use Dark magic, _how_ did you get out of Azkaban at all?"

Pettigrew nodded frantically at him. "_Thank__you_! _Exactly_! _Precisely_ what I-"

He stopped when Bakura gave him a glare only worthy for a King of Thieves: the thief then turned to Black with a less cold, more expectant look.

Black frowned, not in disappointment or annoyance, but in thought. "I don't really know _how_ I did it…I guess the only reason I didn't lose my mind is that I knew I was innocent. It wasn't a _happy_ thought, so the dementors couldn't take it from me…but it kept me sane…and helped me keep my powers, so when it was…too much…I could become a dog in my cell… Dementors can't see, you know…when I was a dog…when they felt my less human thoughts, they thought I was just going nuts like everyone else…even so, I was very weak…I wouldn't have been able to fight against them much longer without a wand…but then I saw Peter in that picture. I realized he was perfectly positioned to act if the Dark Side gained strength again…he could _easily_ deliver the last Potter to Voldemort and be welcomed back with _honors_…and I was the only one who knew he was still alive. This thought wasn't _happy_…it was an _obsession_, and the dementors couldn't suck it out of me…it cleared my head and gave me enough strength to slip past the dementors when they opened my cell to bring food, swim back to the mainland and travel north toward the Hogwarts grounds. From then on, I lived in the Forbidden Forest…only this cat," he gestured to Crookshanks who was sitting near Pettigrew, hissing softly, "knew about me…he tried to bring Peter to me, and when he couldn't, he gave me a list of passwords he'd stolen from a boy's side-table so I could try and get Peter myself…of course, you know _that_ didn't work so well either. I never would've gotten _any_ of you involved if I could've _helped_ it…but I didn't see any way to get to Peter _without_ getting to your friend here," he gestured to Ron.

There was a silence. At last, Gwen sighed.

"Well…that's it then, isn't it?" she whispered.

She looked up sadly at Black. "Padfoot…can you ever forgive me?"

Black's face broke out into a smile, making him look less like a skeleton and more like Harry's father's best man. "Of course."

And to the surprise of everyone, Gwen embraced Black and broke down sobbing. Black held her close, whispering words of comfort in her ear as if she were merely a child who had just had a nightmare.

Then, almost unbidden, some of the words of her father's story about her mother and Black rose again to Diana's mind…

"_**Sirius was already in love with someone else when he married Carly," explained Lupin, "And vice-versa…"**_

_/Aunt Gwen was the one in love with Black/_ Diana realized, _/That's why she was so determined to catch him…he broke her heart./_

"_No_!"

Pettigrew fell to his knees as though Gwen and Black's embrace was a judge sentencing him to his death. He shuffled forward on his knees until he was able to grab Gwen's robes, and looked at the still teary Gwen imploringly.

"Gwen…it's _me_…it's _Peter_…your _friend_…you _wouldn't_…"

Gwen pulled her robes out of Pettigrew's grasp. "_Don't_ start talking to me about _friends_, Peter. You stopped being my friend as soon as you sold Carly, Lily and James to Voldemort."

"_Remus_!" Pettigrew turned to Lupin, his hands clasped in front of him as though praying, "You don't _believe_ this, do you? Help me…"

But Lupin's glare was enough to silence Pettigrew's appeals to mercy.

"Shall we kill him together?" the werewolf asked his friends quietly.

"Yes, I think so," assented Gwen as she held up her glasses slightly so she could wipe her eyes free of tears, before pulling out her wand.

"Y-you _wouldn't_…you _won't_…" squeaked Pettigrew.

At seeing no mercy in his old friends' eyes, he stumbled over to Ron. "_Ron_…haven't I been a good pet? You _won't_ let them kill me, will you?"

"If you were a better _rat_ than a _human_, Peter, it's not much to boast about," Black growled.

Ron, his eyes filled with anger and revulsion, wrenched his broken leg out of Pettigrew's reach, and Pettigrew, trembling all over, crawled toward Diana.

"_Diana_…you look _just_ like Carly…_Carly_ would've defended me…_she_ would've shown me _mercy_-"

"GET AWAY FROM HER, YOU _RAT_!" Gwen shouted, jumping in front of her niece and pushing Pettigrew away, "How _dare_ you talk about Carly in front of her to try and save your pathetic life!"

Both Black and Lupin strode forward, seized Pettigrew's shoulders and threw him backwards onto the floor.

"You sold three of your best friends to Voldemort," Black hissed, and he, like Pettigrew, was shaking, but out of anger, not fear, "Do you deny it?"

Pettigrew burst into tears like a large bawling baby. It was horrible to watch.

"Sirius, what _could_ I have done? The Dark Lord…you have no _idea_…he has weapons you can't _imagine_…I was _scared_, Sirius…I was _never_ brave like you or James or Carly…he would've _killed_ me, Sirius!"

"YOU SHOULD HAVE _DIED_!" roared Black, "_DIED_ RATHER THAN BETRAY YOUR FRIENDS, AS _WE_ WOULD'VE DONE FOR _YOU_!"

Black, Lupin and Gwen stood shoulder to shoulder, their wands raised.

"You should have realized, Peter," Lupin murmured, his eyes burning with hatred, "If _Voldemort_ didn't kill you…we would. Goodbye, Peter."

Hermione covered her face with her hands and turned away.

"_NO_!" Harry yelled as he ran forward, placing himself in front of Pettigrew and facing the wands, "You can't kill him. You can't."

Gwen, Lupin and Black looked staggered.

"Harry, get out of the way!" Diana implored him.

"This rat is the reason you don't have any _parents_!" growled Bakura, glaring down at Pettigrew, "He would've let _you_ die too without feeling any regret! He doesn't _deserve_ mercy."

"I'm not giving him _mercy_," contended Harry, breathing hard, "We'll take him up to the castle and give him to the dementors. He can go to Azkaban…but don't kill him. I don't think Dare's mum or my parents would've wanted you to become killers just for him."

No one made a sound except for the wheezing Pettigrew. Then Black, Lupin and Gwen looked at each other and lowered their wands together.

"You and Diana are the only people who have the right to decide, Harry," said Black, "But _think_…think of what he _did_…"

Harry looked back toward Diana for approval, and she smiled at him.

"He can go to Azkaban," Artemis's Heir agreed, smiling at Yugi and adding, "If _anyone_ deserves that place, it's him."

Yugi smiled back at her, knowing full well that his Yami had said the very same thing to her when she first decided to take her revenge against Black. "And if he's locked up, Sirius-san goes free."

Gwen smiled. "They're right, Sirius…your freedom is better than revenge."

"Very well," said Lupin, "Stand aside, Harry. I'm going to tie him up, that's all," he added when he noticed Harry's look of concern.

So Harry stepped out of the way, and thin cords shot from Lupin's wand and tied themselves around Pettigrew.

"Right," Lupin suddenly became business-like, "Ron, I can't mend bones like Madame Pomfrey, so I'll just strap up your leg for now."

He bent down, tapped Ron's leg with his wand and muttered, "_Ferula_." Bandages spun up Ron's leg and strapped it tight into a splint. Lupin helped him to his feet: Ron put his weight tentatively on the leg and didn't wince.

"Much better," he sighed, "Thanks."

"What about Snape-baka?" asked Bakura, nudging the professor's greasy head with his foot, "Can we leave him in front of the Whomping Willow and let it beat him up for us?"

Black laughed a laugh that sounded a bark from the dog he could transform into. "I _wish_…but I don't think Gwen here would deem it a good idea."

Gwen did indeed look reproachful as she cast the spell, "_Mobilicorpus_."

Little strings of light flew from Gwen's wand and tied themselves around Snape's wrists, neck and knees, pulling him into a standing position a few inches off the ground with his head lolling unpleasantly backwards and his legs dangling, making him like some grotesque puppet. Lupin then grabbed Harry's Invisibility Cloak off the ground and tucked it safely into his robes.

"Two of us should be chained to Peter, too," remarked Black, "Just in case."

"I'll do it," said Lupin.

"And me," added Ron, limping forward.

Black conjured heavy manacles from thin air, and Pettigrew was forced upright, his left arm chained to Lupin's right and his right arm to Ron's left.

"Alright, then," stated Gwen, "Let's head back to the castle."

* * *

**Mokuba: (singing from downstairs) _If it hadn't been for Cotton Eye Joe, I'd been married long time ago! Where'd ya come from? Where'd ya go? Where'd ya come from, Cotton Eye Joe?_  
**

**Noa: End chapter. (turns Kitty's computer chair around to look at the others) Hey Kitty, you know you'll have to type up the next chapter now instead of going into your bin of previously written chapters from spring break?**

**Kitty: (head still buried in her pillow) Yeah. I'll do it later.**

**Seto: (looks at Yugi significantly) **

**Yugi: What?**

**Seto: Cheer her up already. Her depression is bugging the hell out of me.  
**

**Yugi: (glares at Seto) You're so insensitive. (goes over to Kitty) You know, Kitty Kat...I was talking to your mum about you not getting to see Claire...and she brought the idea back up that one summer we could take a vacation to England sometime...and suggested maybe we could see Claire there, in her home!**

**Kitty: (jumps up excitedly) REALLY? **

**Seto: Well, that cheered her up, Yugi. Nice job.**

**Kitty: (sings and jumps up and down on her bed) _WE'RE GOING TO ENGLAND! WE'RE GOING TO ENGLAND!_**

**Yugi: (grins at Kitty's reaction) Glad this made you happy, Kitten.**

**Kitty: (still chanting) _WE'RE GOING TO ENGLAND! ENGLAND, ENGLAND, ENGLAND!_**

**Seto and Noa: (sweatdrop)**

**Mokuba: (singing downstairs)_ If it hadn't been for Cotton Eye Joe, I'd been married long time ago- _**

**Yugi: (to audience) R&R!**


	20. Chapter 19: Expecto Patronum

**Kitty: (comes into her room and collapses on her bed, giggling)**

**Yugi: (looks up from Kitty's computer and turns the computer chair around to look at her) What's going on, Kitten?**

**Kitty: (still giggling) Well...Mum and I went to go see that new movie, Hoot. You know, the one based on the book about the three kids that made to stop a pancake factory from building a resterant on top of an owl preserve?**

**Yugi: Yeah...**

**Kitty: Well...after watching that movie, I found a stray and brought it home.**

**Yugi: Huh?**

**Kitty: (whistles) Hey, Mullet Fingers! C'mon over here!**

**Mullet: (comes on in) Yeah, what?**

**Yugi: (stares) WHAT THE HELL IS HE DOING HERE?**

**Kitty: Are you _kidding_? He's so _cute_! I couldn't resist bringing him home.**

**Yugi: HE BELONGS IN FLORIDA!**

**Kitty: He's spending a few days with us before he goes back to work.**

**Yugi: HE CAN'T BE MUCH OLDER THAN 12!**

**Kitty: Age is just a number. **

**Yugi: HE'S BLOND!**

**Kitty: So are you. At least your bangs are.**

**Yugi: (steam comes out of his ears)**

**Mullet: Look, man, I'm only spending a bit of time here, and most of that time will either be outside looking in on enviromental meetings or in your clear sight of me. I'm not here to steal your girlfriend. **

**Kitty: He's just a cool dude is all, sticking up for the owls. **

**Mullet: Charmed, I'm sure. Now if you'll excuse me...gotta go do some stuff.**

**Kitty: Going to go save some owls?**

**Mullet: No...there's an animal that needs to get away from a giant cat not too far from here. (winks at Yugi significantly)**

**Yugi: (gets what he means and smirks at Mullet) Well then, get out of here and help that poor thing.**

**Mullet: (smirks back at Yugi and runs out)**

**Kitty: (blinks questioningly at Yugi) You don't seem so mad anymore. **

**Yugi: Nah...he's not so bad, really. (turns the chair around to look back at Kitty's computer) Want me to post that new chapter you wrote? **

**Kitty: (still surprised) Okay...you do that... (turns to the audience) R&R, guys!**

**

* * *

**  
_**Chapter Nineteen:**_

_**Expecto Patronum**_

Down the long tunnel from the Shrieking Shack back up to the Hogwarts grounds the strange group walked. In the lead was Crookshanks the cat, his bottlebrush tail held high and marching as if he were a general of the British army. After him came the manacle-linked Remus, Pettigrew and Ron, looking as if they were part of a six-legged race. Next was the unconscious Snape still being held up by the strings of light by Gwen. Then came Sirius, Diana and Harry, and Yugi, Hermione and Bakura brought up the rear.

At last they got to the end of the tunnel: Remus, Pettigrew and Ron had to turn sideways just to get out.

Diana looked at the unconscious Snape as Gwen tried to lead him out without scraping his head against the ceiling, and she finally decided to break the silence between Sirius and her.

"What kinds of pranks did you guys do on him?" she asked quite abruptly.

It occurred to her after she had opened her mouth that Sirius might not know what she was talking about. But he did.

"All sorts," he replied with a smirk, "I remember once Gwen charmed his hair pink, and ever since then, James and I worked really hard to change the jinx so we could make his hair flash Gryffindor colors…we never _did_ figure out how to do it without making Snape's hair fall out afterwards."

Diana and Harry both laughed. Gwen snorted, half derisive and half amused, as she finally succeeded in getting Snape out the exit.

"I'd forgotten about that one," she commented as she climbed out of the tunnel herself, "It always seemed to be _Carly_ who knew those spells…"

Sirius's smirk widened as he took her lead. "Carly _did_ know a fair amount of jinxes…James and I knew that plenty well after all the times we got her mad. The Moldy-Teeth Jinx…the Sex-Change Hex…those spells were _evil_ things. _Brilliant_, but _evil_."

Diana lifted herself up out of the tunnel, helped Harry out too, and then turned back to the conversation.

"Hey, Aunt Gwen…when Sirius is freed, he'll come and visit, right?"

Sirius looked at Gwen with a beseeching look only worthy of a dog, and she smiled at him.

"Maybe _more_ than visit," the Ministry witch answered, "I don't think Remus told you, Diana, but Sirius and I-"

"Were together," Diana finished for her, "I figured that out."

"Why am I not surprised?" Gwen muttered, unlike her normal stern self and actually sounding semi good-natured, "At any rate…Sirius and I were to be engaged after Carly and Remus were to take you out of the country and start a new life together…and Sirius, as Harry's legal godfather, _could_ be his guardian if he wanted a different home-"

"You mean…I can _leave_ the Dursleys?" interrupted Harry, looking shocked and thrilled at the same time, "I can live with _Sirius_?"

Sirius nodded, obviously happy Harry was so excited. "And if Gwen and I finalize our engagement, we could move in with Diana and Gwen."

Diana's eyes widened. "_We'll all live together_? Me, Harry and you guys?"

"Mm-hmm," Gwen nodded.

"As long as that's _alright_ with you," added Sirius quickly.

"Of _course_ it's alright with me!" Diana and Harry said in unison.

And Sirius gave the widest, truest smile the two would ever see on his face.

There were a few moments of silence, not awkward, but excitedly thoughtful. Diana knew very well how unhappy Harry was at the Dursleys, and was very eager to have a friend at her house all the time. After all, she visited the Weasleys a lot during the summer because there was nothing she could do at home, but now she actually was looking forward to coming back home this summer. That, and with Sirius there, Harry and she could go places even while Gwen was at work.

"One wrong move, Peter," warned Remus up ahead, pointing his wand sideways at Pettigrew's chest as they continued walking across the grounds.

Diana looked up at the sky with a smile. For all she knew, now that she had met her father, Remus might get to live with her and Gwen as well.

Her smile faded, however, when a cloud shifted across the sky like a set of curtains opening to reveal the main player on a stage…

A full, white moon.

Diana froze as the whole party was bathed in moonlight. The still-hovering Snape collided with Ron, Remus and Pettigrew as they stopped abruptly. Sirius held out an arm to tell the students behind him to stop. Remus's silhouette had gone rigid: his limbs began to shake as if he was having a fit.

"_Oh no_!" Hermione gasped in horror, "He hasn't taken his potion tonight! He's not safe!"

"_Ron_," Diana whispered.

She ran towards him without thinking, but Sirius caught her around the chest and held her back.

"_NO_!" he said, "You take the others and run back to the castle!"

"What about Ron?" demanded Harry in panic, "He's chained to Lupin!"

"Leave it to us," hissed Gwen, releasing the unconscious Snape from her wand's strings of light and dropping him on the ground, "_GO_!"

There was a horrible, wolfish snarling. Remus's head and body lengthened…his shoulders hunched and hair started to grow all over him: his hands curled into clawed paws. Crookshanks's orange fur stood on end and he yowled, backing away in fear. The werewolf reared, breaking the chains attaching him to Pettigrew, and gave a loud, terrible howl into the dark night. It was as if the professor all of the students had known throughout the year had caved into a horrible monster…it must have been what it was like for anyone who saw Diana transform into Artemis.

"_Dad_," murmured Diana weakly.

The werewolf had heard her: he turned to look at her. Diana at any other time would've run, but she was frozen stiff. For a split moment, as the golden eyes of the werewolf and the fearful blue eyes of Diana locked, she wondered if Remus would recognize her and not attack. Then the werewolf lunged for her.

But when the werewolf should've jumped on her and killed her, a black, brown and orange calico cat leapt onto the werewolf's snout and began scratching its face. The werewolf howled with rage, shaking his head back and forth to try to get the cat off, but the cat just hung on, yowling furiously. Finally the werewolf succeeded in disposing of the cat by sinking its claws into the cat's side, grabbing it off of its snout and slamming the cat headfirst into a tree. The cat lay on the ground, mewling in pain, before a weak and heavily bleeding Gwen took its place.

"AUNT GWEN!" Diana shouted.

Sirius let go of Diana, and the black, bear-like dog leapt over her and onto the werewolf, barking and growling angrily. His jaws clamped down on the werewolf's neck and pulled it back away from Ron and Pettigrew. The werewolf wrenched free, and the two friends-turned-canines fought, claws slashing and jaws ripping at each other.

Diana watched the fight, transfixed. She was so worried about Sirius and Remus she didn't see Pettigrew diving for Remus's fallen wand until Bakura's shout made her turn around.

"OH NO YOU DON'T!"

But by that time, Pettigrew had already grabbed the wand. There was a _BANG_ and a burst of light…and Ron was on the ground, motionless.

"RON-KUN!" Yugi cried.

Diana's eyes narrowed as she raised her wand.

"_Expelliarmus_!" she yelled: Remus's wand flew out of Pettigrew's hand and she caught it.

Harry ran toward Pettigrew to try and catch him before he could escape, but it was already too late. Pettigrew had transformed and scurried out of the manacle that had connected him to Ron, and the rat was now running away through the grass and out of sight.

"_Damn it_!" growled Bakura.

There was another howl: Diana turned to see the werewolf running away toward the forest. Then…a whimper of a wounded dog.

"_Sirius_," Harry whispered.

The students saw the bleeding black dog run awkwardly toward the lake in an attempt to recapture Pettigrew: Diana made to follow him, but she remembered her Aunt Gwen and instead dashed over to her.

"W-what did he do to him?" Hermione squeaked, her eyes filling up with tears as she bent down near Ron. His brown eyes were half-mast and his mouth was open: he was definitely alive, but he seemed not to recognize anything around him.

"I don't know," said Yugi, "But he and Dare-kun's aunt need help…"

Diana, who had been checking Gwen's pulse, shot back up to her feet. "Yugi, Mione, Bakura...get Ron and Aunt Gwen to Madame Pomfrey. Harry and I need to find Sirius."

"Are you _insane_?" Bakura shouted, his dark brown eyes flashing, "No way in _hell_ am I leaving you alone again, Dare-chan! Either I go with you or you come with me."

Diana turned to look at him. "Don't argue with me, Bakura…my aunt needs _help_…but so does _Sirius_. If I don't help Sirius, he may get caught or Pettigrew might escape…I need you to _trust_ me and get help. Yugi and Mione _can't_ carry both Ron and Aunt Gwen alone."

"But-" Bakura argued.

"Don't make me plead with you," Diana implored him, "I _know_ you lost your trust in me when I Stunned you earlier…I don't have time for a full apology…but I _never_ wanted to hurt you. I only did it because I wanted to catch Sirius before any of you got hurt."

It was as if Diana had read the Tomb Robber's mind and had calmed all of the worries he had been feeling with her words. Bakura at first stared at her, as if he were battling with himself whether or not to argue: then he said, "Alright, Dare-chan…if you're _sure_. But be _careful_."

Diana nodded. "Take good care of her."

Bakura hoisted Gwen uneasily onto his back, paying no mind to the blood falling from her figure and staining his Hikari's clothes. "Of course."

With those words, Diana and Harry ran off toward the lake, leaving their friends behind. Hermione and a newly appeared Atem each pulled Ron to his feet and wrapped one of his arms over their shoulders so they could drag the much taller boy along as they walked.

"Come on, Tomb Robber," Atem called when he noticed Bakura was still staring after Diana and Harry.

Bakura looked back at him in annoyance: nevertheless, he turned around and started to walk with the Pharaoh and Hermione…

But all three of them froze before they could get very far.

A familiar rush of odd coldness washed over the three, as the dementors glided deathly close to them and toward the lake where Diana, Harry and Sirius were.

Atem heard Yugi's voice in his head, _"It only needs one of us, so I'm letting the Seal take me instead..."_ and felt the horrible feeling in his soul of being incomplete…empty…meaningless.

_-No! Yugi, don't leave me! Don't leave me!-_ Atem screamed in his head, and although Yugi tried to call back to him that everything was okay, the dementors' presence in their mind seemed to cut them off from each other.

Hermione felt her vision flicker in and out of focus. She gripped Ron's hand, pleading with herself to stay conscious to make sure he got help…but it was so hard…she could barely feel the warmth of his hand as she and Atem felt their knees collapse and hit the grass…

'_Ron…hold on,'_ she thought, _'I'm sorry…I'm so sorry…'_

Bakura saw flames consuming bodies and homes and felt tears of a terrified child fall from his wide, fearful eyes…the face of the old Artemis surfaced in his mind, before it gave way to the new, evil Artemis…and then Diana…

"_Dare-chan_…" he could barely harness enough strength to speak before he fell to the ground and gave into the darkness of nightmares.

* * *

Diana and Harry followed the yelping of Sirius down toward the edge of the lake, trying to ignore the coldness they assumed was the changing weather. When they reached the shore of the lake, they saw Sirius. He transformed back into a man, crouched on all fours and his hands over his head.

"_No_…" Sirius moaned, "_No_…_please_…"

The two ran to the criminal's side…and finally turned around to see the source of the odd chill.

At least fifty dementors glided in a huge mass toward them, and, when Diana turned to look across the lake, she saw at least fifty more were joining the first set, encircling them and leaving no place to run. They were trapped.

The coldness began to penetrate her body…it seemed to sink its claws into her soul…the little girl's scream echoed in her ears…

Diana felt her knees hit the grass. Her vision was failing…all she could see was shapes…soon, she knew, there would be nothing…

"_Expecto Patronum_!"

A soft voice struggled to be heard over the girl's screams in Diana's head…but who _was_ it? It sounded so _familiar_…

"_Expecto Patronum_! _Expecto Patronum_!"

What was this person _saying_? The girl's scream made it hard for her to decipher his words…was he yelling at her for killing the girl?

Suddenly she felt a hand grip hers…an equally cold hand…but it seemed to warm her up all the same, as if the presence of someone unafraid to touch her was enough to slightly deflect the painful effects of the dementors.

"Hold on, Dare…hold on…I'm _trying_, Dare, I'm _trying_! _Expecto Patronum_! _EXPECTO PATRONUM_!"

Diana didn't know what the voice was saying, but it didn't seem angry…it sounded almost _reassuring_, even though it was no doubt terrified. It was probably some guy from the Ministry trying to make sure she'd cooperate until they were away from Muggles...yet…it sounded so _sincere_. Who _was_ it? She tried to ask, but she couldn't quite access her vocal cords. She couldn't access her limbs either…her head was foggy…she couldn't think...but still that voice just kept yelling, trying to be heard over the little girl's screams.

"_EXPECTO PATRONUM_! _EXPECTO PATRONUM_!"

Her vision failed…her strength let out. A feeble wisp of silver tried to guide her back to the light, only to be consumed by dementors' evil shadows. She lost grip of the cold, yet friendly hand…the screams filled her ears…

And Diana knew no more.

* * *

**Kitty: And...cut.**

**Yugi: (is listening to a Flash program in another window)**

**Kitty: What are you doing?**

**Yugi: YouTube is cool. There's something here for everyone! First Mokuba and now me, satisfied.**

**Kitty: What did you find? **

**Yugi: La Vie Boheme: Harry Potter style.**

**Kitty: REALLY? LEMME SEE! (plays the Flash) OMFG, THIS IS AWESOME!**

**Yugi: (turns around to look at the audience) R&R! **


	21. Chapter 20: Turn Back the Clock

**Kitty: (on her bed looking over a very disorganized folder of notes) Gargh.**

**Yugi: (comes into Kitty's room) So...how's the studying for your High School Assessments going?**

**Kitty: Yucky yuck yuck.**

**Noa: (pokes his head out from under Kitty's bed) Can't be any more gross than it is down here...apparently Snape's hair isn't only thing of his that is greasy. (sweatdrop)**

**Kitty: (gets up from her bed) Well, I can't take this anymore. I'm posting my latest chapter. (goes over to her computer, types some stuff and then clicks the mouse) R&R, my loverlies!**

**

* * *

**

_**Chapter Twenty:**_

_**Turn Back the Clock**_

"_Shocking _business, never heard anything _like_ it…_miracle_ none of them were Kissed or killed…it was lucky you were _there_, Severus…Order of Merlin, Second Class, I'd say! _First_ Class, if I can wangle it!"

"Thank you very much _indeed_, Minister."

"Nasty cut you've got there…Black's work, I suppose?"

"No, actually, it was Potter, Bakura and Granger."

"_No_!"

"Black had bewitched them, obviously. A Confundus Charm, to judge by their actions…they were under the impression Black could be _innocent_. Unfortunately their misjudgment almost let Black _escape_…they must've been trying to catch Black _themselves_: understandable, considering how much Potter and his friends are able to get away with most of the time…made them feel too _self-confident_."

"Ah, well, Severus…Harry Potter, you know…we _all_ have a bit of a blind spot where _he's_ concerned…even so, we shall see…he and his friends have no doubt been _foolish_…what baffles _me_, however, are the _dementors_. You say Black, Harry and Diana, as well as Guinevere, Mr. Mutou and their other friends, were all unconscious when you found them, but the dementors obviously were scared off by _something_ near the lake…they don't just retreat for no _reason_, after all…"

"I can't explain it any better myself, Minister. I only came around in time to bound Black and bring the students and Guinevere on stretchers up to the castle…of course, Guinevere is now in St. Mungo's for those injuries Lupin ensured on her."

Diana had barely registered the voices talking those last few minutes: it was like she had been listening to a badly-tuned radio, catching snippets of the discussion but still too out of it to make out its subject. At last, she opened her eyes, blinked and tried to figure out what had happened. The deathly white ceiling and the comfort of the bed she was on told her she was in the Hospital Wing…but _why_?

"_Dare_!"

Diana looked to her left and saw Hermione getting up from her own bed, as well as Harry across the way, reaching over to his bedside table to grab his glasses.

"_Ah_, good to see you coming around!" Madame Pomfrey stated briskly as she broke apart a bar of chocolate and gave some to each of them.

But Diana paid no attention to the chocolate and instead looked around at the rest of the Hospital Wing. To the left to Harry's bed lay Yugi, on his right was Ron, and on her other side, she recognized the pale face of Ryou.

"Are they alright?" she asked worriedly, mostly about Bakura.

"They'll survive," Madame Pomfrey answered grimly, "I sent Gwen to St. Mungo's for her wounds: she should probably be awake in a day or two. Misters Mutou and Bakura probably will wake up soon too…Mr. Weasley, however, might have to stay here for a while yet…Black cursed him pretty badly."

The nurse's mention of Sirius made Harry, Hermione and Diana all stiffen like startled cats, and the three jumped up out of their beds in unison.

"We've got to go see Dumbledore!" said Harry in alarm.

"Settle down, settle _down_," Madame Pomfrey soothed, "It's _alright_…they've got Black locked away upstairs…the dementors will be performing the Kiss any minute now-"

"_What_?" Diana felt herself fill with panic, "_They can't do that_!"

"Now, _now_, Diana," Fudge had just entered, followed closely by Snape, "What's all this? You should be in _bed_…"

"Minister!" implored Harry, "Sirius Black is _innocent_! Peter Pettigrew faked his death! We _saw_ him, in the Shrieking Shack! You _can't_ let the dementors-"

"Harry, you're _confused_," Fudge interjected, trying to calm him down, "You have been through a _dreadful_ ordeal: lie down, we've got everything under _control_-"

"_No, you__don't_!" Diana argued, "You've got the wrong man!"

"Minister, _please_," Hermione pleaded, "_I_ saw him too, and so did our friends and Dare's aunt! It was Ron's rat…Pettigrew…he's an unregistered Animagus-"

"You see, Minister?" Snape cut off Hermione's rush of explanations coolly, "Confunded, the three of them…Black did a very good job on them…"

"_WE'RE NOT FUCKING CONFUNDED_!" Diana roared.

"Minister, Professor, _really_!" snapped Madame Pomfrey, trying to shove Diana back into bed, "These children are my _patients_, and they shouldn't be _distressed_!"

"_We're not distressed, damn it_!" Diana growled, struggling to get free, "We're trying to tell them what _happened_, if they'd just let us _explain_- _MURPH_!"

Madame Pomfrey had shoved a piece of chocolate down her throat and, while she choked it down, pushed her back into bed.

"Now _please_, these children need _care_. Please leave at once-"

The door opened once more, and in walked Dumbledore.

Harry and Diana immediately started fighting to be heard again.

"Headmaster-"

"Professor, Sirius Black-"

"_For heaven's sake_!" Madame Pomfrey cried hysterically, "Is this a Hospital Wing or _not_? Everyone…_out_! Headmaster, I _must_ insist-"

"I apologize, Poppy, but I need to speak with your patients," Dumbledore interrupted her quite calmly, "I've just been talking to Sirius Black-"

"Don't tell me you _believe_ Black's little fairy tale!" Snape spat, "Something about a _rat_, and _Pettigrew_ being alive…doesn't _my_ evidence count for anything? I never saw Pettigrew in the Shrieking Shack, nor on the grounds."

"You were knocked out cold before you had the chance!" Diana growled, "You weren't the _only_ one there, you know: _we_ can give evidence too-"

"HOLD YOUR TONGUE, RANDALL!" snarled Snape, his eyes dangerous.

"Now, Severus," Fudge reproached, "Diana is disturbed in her _mind_: we can't-"

"I would like to speak to these students _alone_," Dumbledore stopped the escalating conversation firmly, "Cornelius, Severus, Poppy…please leave us."

"B-but _Headmaster_!" Madame Pomfrey spluttered, "Th-they need _treatment_-"

"This _can't_ wait, Poppy," Dumbledore told her, and she knew not to argue. The nurse pursed her lips, walked into her office and slammed the door behind her.

Fudge took a pocket watch from his waistcoat and looked at it. "The dementors should be here now: I'll go meet them, Albus, and see you upstairs later."

He crossed to the door and held it open for Snape. The Potions Master eyed Dumbledore suspiciously, and shot a glare at Diana and Harry before turning and marching out the door. Fudge followed, closing the door behind him as he went.

As soon as they were alone, the three students all burst into speech at once.

"Professor, Sirius is telling the truth-"

"-We _saw_ Pettigrew-"

"-He escaped when Professor Lupin transformed into a werewolf-"

"-He's a rat Animagus-"

"-Pettigrew cut his finger off and faked his death-"

"_-Pettigrew_ attacked Ron, it wasn't Sirius-"

They could've gone on for ages explaining, but Dumbledore held up his hand.

"It's _your_ turn to listen, and I beg you not to interrupt me…we have little time. There is _nothing_ to support Black's story except _your_ word, and the word of some teenage wizards isn't going to overturn the accounts of eyewitnesses who saw Sirius kill Pettigrew. Professor Snape's account is _far_ more convincing than yours: without Pettigrew, we can't prove Sirius's innocence."

"But my dad…Aunt Gwen…_they_ can testify-" Diana argued.

"Remus is a werewolf…I'm sure you know the mistrust toward his kind, Diana," Dumbledore cut her off solemnly. "And Gwen is unconscious, unlikely to be awake before Sirius receives the Kiss. He will be worse than dead, and few would be ready to believe her even if she _did_ try to tell the public the truth."

"But _you_ believe her," Harry said desperately, "_You_ believe us…"

"That may be, Harry," Dumbledore replied quietly, "But I have no power to overrule the Ministry, nor to make bias-blinded people see the truth."

Harry looked stunned: Diana reasoned that Harry was used to Dumbledore always having the answer to their problems…this time, however, the Headmaster's grave face told the students that there was no way they could prove Sirius's innocence.

"What we need," Dumbledore said as he turned to Hermione, "Is more _time_."

Hermione was ready to question this: then her eyes grew wide in understanding.

"Now pay very close attention," Dumbledore murmured, making sure to enunciate every word, "Sirius is locked in Professor Flitwick's office on the seventh floor: that's the thirteenth window to the right of the West Tower. If all goes well, you'll be able to save more than one life tonight…but remember…_you must not be seen_."

Diana looked at Harry and saw a mirrored look of perplexity. She then eyed Hermione, who was listening attentively: obviously the bookworm knew more than she or Harry did about what the Headmaster was talking about. Dumbledore had turned on his heel and looked at the three again as he reached the door.

"I'm going to lock you in now," he told them, glancing at his watch, "It is five minutes to midnight, so three turns should do it, Miss Granger. Good luck."

And with that, the door closed.

"What the fuck was _that_ about?" asked Diana.

"Three turns?" Harry repeated, eyeing Hermione, "Mione, what's he mean?"

Hermione didn't answer: she was too busy fumbling with the neck of her robes. Then she pulled out a tiny sparkling gold hourglass on a chain around her neck.

"Dare, Harry, come here," she muttered, throwing the chain over their necks too.

Diana stared down at the hourglass in disbelief. "Mione, is that what I _think_ it is? Is _that_ how you've been getting to all those classes of yours? A _Time Turner_?"

"What's a Time-?" Harry started to ask, but Hermione interrupted him.

"_Later_! I'll explain _later_…right now, we've got to _move_!"

And Hermione turned the hourglass over three times.

It was like they were stuck in a rewinding video: people were moving rapidly in reverse, walking out of doors and healing people backwards. Everything was blurred and sound seemed to die…senses seemed nonexistent…

Finally it stopped, and the three were in an empty Hospital Wing. Hermione yanked the chain up and off of her friends' necks, grabbed their hands and pulled them out into the Entrance Hall. The bookworm jerked her head to the left at the sound of footsteps and immediately pulled her friends into a broom closet and slammed the door behind them, throwing the three students in semi-darkness.

"Well…now that we're in a situation that could be called _perverted_, Mione, are you planning on explaining what the hell is going on?" Harry inquired.

Hermione punched Harry in the arm, an annoyed look on her face: then she lifted the Time Turner up so Harry could see it clearly. "Professor McGonagall gave this to me so I could get to all my classes…but I had to promise not to tell anyone. We've gone back in time three hours, and I think the footsteps we heard outside are Yugi, Ron, you and me going down to see Hagrid."

"Bakura's not with you?" Diana asked, her ear to the door and listening.

"We met up with him near the staircase up to the Defense Against the Dark Arts hallway," replied Hermione, "He'd been with you, remember?"

Diana nodded sadly, remembering her deception of Bakura and feeling even guiltier at the thought of Ryou lying in a hospital bed.

"But I don't just _understand_…how will us going back three hours help Sirius?" Hermione inquired, frowning deeply.

There was a silence. Then Diana muttered, "He said that we'd be able to save more than one life tonight…what if he means saving _Buckbeak_ too? Right now you were going down to see Hagrid before Buckbeak was executed-"

"You mean we _are_ going down to see Hagrid before Buckbeak _is_ executed," corrected Harry, "But yeah…Dumbledore said that Sirius was locked in Flitwick's office, thirteenth window from West Tower…he wants us to fly Buckbeak up to the window, get Sirius out of the office and let them escape together!"

Hermione's eyes widened. "We need a _miracle_ to do all that without being _seen_!"

"Then let's make a miracle, shall we?" said Diana. She pressed her ear to the door again and added, "I think you're gone now. Let's follow you up to Hagrid's."

"That sounded _so_ weird," Harry remarked, "But hey…since when has anything at Hogwarts been anything _less_?"

So the two girls and one boy snuck around hallways, following the slow footsteps of their past selves through the castle and out onto the grounds and up to Hagrid's front door. As soon as they saw the past Harry, Ron, Hermione, Yugi and Bakura disappear into Hagrid's hut without seeing them, Diana, Hermione and Harry snuck around the other end of Hagrid's hut toward where Buckbeak was tied up.

"Oh, if _only_ we could go in and grab Pettigrew," muttered Harry.

"And _what_ would you think if you saw yourself bursting into Hagrid's house and chasing after Ron's rat, pre tell?" Diana asked him.

"That I'd gone mad," Harry replied.

Diana nodded. "You go nuts enough _without_ seeing your future self dancing around in front of you. And if you do that, you won't learn the truth about Sirius."

Harry sighed. "I guess you're right."

"Come on!" hissed Hermione, as Diana watched her friends sneak out through the backdoor and Fudge, Dumbledore and the executioner walk in through the front.

Diana started toward Buckbeak, but Hermione grabbed her arm. "The executioner…Macnair…he needs to see Buckbeak's out there first. They'll think Hagrid set him free otherwise."

Artemis's Heir sighed, but nodded anyway in agreement, as she watched Macnair's face appear and disappear again from the window. She then walked toward Buckbeak and bowed slowly. The hippogriff bowed back, and Diana untied him from the post he'd be secured to and led him back to where Harry and Hermione were waiting.

"Good job, Dare!" praised Hermione.

"No sweat," the redhead replied, smiling and patting Buckbeak's neck.

"What do we do now?" asked Harry.

"We wait," Hermione answered, "Until we fly up and rescue Sirius."

And so they sat on the ground for quite a long time, waiting. Diana stroked Buckbeak's feathers and watched the grounds as her friends and Sirius, then she and Lupin, and finally Gwen and Snape traveled down through the gap in the Whomping Willow's roots and to the Shrieking Shack. Finally, after what seemed like hours, Hermione couldn't take the silence anymore.

"There's something I don't get," the bookworm murmured, "Why didn't the dementors Kiss you? The Minister said you were all out cold when Professor Snape found you…but the dementors were driven _away_ by something."

Diana frowned. "I don't know…I fell unconscious…"

Then she remembered Harry had been there beside her, trying to conjure a Patronus to fight the dementors away.

"Harry, what do you…?"

But when she turned to look at him, she realized he was gone.

"Harry?"

There was silence, and there was no sight of Harry. Fear rushed through Diana's veins and she leapt to her feet.

"Harry? _Harry_! Where are you? _HARRY_!"

"_Harry_?" cried Hermione, "Harry, answer us!"

But he didn't answer. Nothing did.

Diana looked at Hermione, terror and urgency in her eyes. "Mione…hold onto Buckbeak. I'm going to go find Harry."

"Dare, no!" Hermione tried to stop her, but she had already started running away.

* * *

Harry waited in a bunch of bushes near the lake, waiting patiently for Diana and him to travel down the opposite bank to find Sirius. He had seen something unbelievable before he'd passed out…he just _had_ to know…had he _really_ seen what he thought he'd seen?

* * *

_**Terror filled Harry as Diana's hand fell away from his. The dementors were so close…he couldn't move…he couldn't speak. His Patronus flickered and died. White fog filled his senses, blinding him. He felt around to find Diana's hand, and then he found Sirius's…he wouldn't let the dementors take his friends…**_

_**A pair of clammy hands took hold of Harry's neck, forcing his face upwards. He felt a dementor's cold, rattling breath on his face, and all he could hear were the screams of his mother…**_

_**Then, through the fog and darkness ready to inhale him, Harry could see a silver light running toward him, becoming brighter with every step it took…the coldness ebbed away…the hands released his neck…his mother's screams faded…and the animal-shaped light charged at the dementors into a retreat…**_

_**Then the light journeyed back toward the opposite side of the lake to meet the one who'd created it…and as Harry weakly tried to raise his head, he could see the outline of the person…he looked so familiar…but it couldn't be…**_

_**It couldn't be his father…**_

_**And then, out of nowhere, a woman with a mane of flaming hair ran toward the man: the man turned around to look at her, before looking back across the lake at him. The woman too looked familiar…he had to be dreaming…**_

"_**Mum…?" Harry was only able to whisper this confused word before his mind died and all went black.

* * *

**_

'_Dad…Mum…'_ Harry thought, _'I know you're dead…but I know you were there…I've just got to see you…'_

He saw Diana and himself run down the bank to the moaning Sirius: he hid behind the bush and peeked through the leaves, waiting for his dad to appear and save them…but even as Diana collapsed beside his past self and his own flickering Patronus flickered out, no one appeared.

'_Dad, where are you…?'_ Harry wondered, looking around and pleading that he was coming this way. He would be saving them any moment…where _was_ he?

A dementor lowered his hood and grabbed the past Harry's neck…and still, no one came. No one was coming to save him…

And then, Harry realized…

He _hadn't_ seen his father…he'd seen _himself_.

He jumped out from behind the bush and pulled out his wand and cried, "_EXPECTO PATRONUM_!"

A humongous, dazzling silver animal shot out of his wand and galloped across the black surface of the lake to chase away the dementors. Harry squinted, struggling to see what it was…it was as bright as a unicorn…but as the Patronus turned and cantered back to him, Harry saw that it wasn't a unicorn at all. It was a stag, shining like the moon above and eying Harry with its large silver eyes, and as Harry stared into the stag's deep orbs, his eyes widened in stunned realization.

"_Prongs_," Harry breathed.

He reached to pet the silver stag, but a voice from behind him broke his focus.

"_Harry_!"

Harry turned, for a moment expecting to see his mother…but when he saw the source of the voice, he found the worried, boyish face of Diana. He turned back to look at his Patronus, to see that it had vanished.

"Harry, what the _hell_ do you think you were _doing_?" Diana demanded, "Do you have any idea how _scared _I was? You _know_ you weren't supposed to be _seen_!"

"Hark who's talking," Harry replied, not wanting to think of anything but what had just happened, "It pays you back for how scared _I_ was when you went after Lupin."

"Oh, very _witty_," growled Diana, "When you're _done_, we've got to get out of here…and maybe on the way back to meet Mione and Buckbeak, you can give me an _explanation_…either _that_, or I'll _pulverize_ you, it's your choice."

Harry ultimately chose Diana's first option and explained what had happened by the lake, and Diana did cool off after understanding the reasons behind her friend's actions. Even so, as they saw Snape conjure stretchers to bring them, Bakura, Atem and Gwen up to the castle, they knew there was no time to lose.

When they met up with Hermione, Diana climbed onto Buckbeak before helping Harry and an acrophobic Hermione up behind her. Then she nudged Buckbeak's side with her heel and the hippogriff flew them up into the air. It took Diana a while before she could lead Buckbeak where she wanted, but in the end, she managed it. They flew up to the thirteen window from the West Tower, and Diana pulled the reins to stop Buckbeak as she caught sight of a downcast-looking Sirius.

Harry rapped the glass: Sirius looked up and did a double take at the sight of the students riding Buckbeak on the other side of the glass. Hermione, struggling not to look down and faint out of fright, raised her wand to the window and cast the spell "_Alohomora_!" to make the window spring open.

"H-_how_…?" Sirius could barely speak coherently.

"No time to explain," muttered Diana, "Get on, quick!"

Sirius obeyed and climbed on behind Hermione: Diana clicked her tongue and tapped Buckbeak's side with her foot to lead the hippogriff up to the West Tower. When they got to the top, Diana, Harry and Hermione slid off of Buckbeak, leaving Sirius alone on the creature's back.

"Now go," Harry told his godfather, "Before someone sees you."

For a moment, Sirius didn't move, and merely stared at Harry and Diana in a mixture of incredulity and relief.

"Where are your other friends?" he asked, "Where's Gwen?"

"Aunt Gwen's in St. Mungo's, but she'll be fine by tomorrow," Diana assured him, "And the others will be fine too, Poppy can heal anything. Now get out of here."

But he still didn't move.

"How can I ever thank-?"

"_GO_!" Harry, Diana and Hermione said in unison.

So Sirius smiled and wheeled Buckbeak toward the open sky.

"We'll see each other again," he told them, "Thank you…for believing me."

He tapped Buckbeak's side with his heel, and the enormous wings rose once more and pounded up and down against the air, carrying the two escapees farther and farther and farther away, until the two vanished from sight.

* * *

**Kitty: (eating some teriyaki chicken and rice) End chappie.**

**Noa: (grins) Good for Sirius.**

**Yugi: But there's something I've always wondered...where did Sirius go after he flew away?**

**(A flapping of wings is heard outside the window)**

**Noa: What the hell is that noise?**

**Kitty: Dunno. (goes over to the window and peers out)**

**Sirius: (is outside the window on Buckbeak) Hi...I...I heard from an old friend of mine that if I needed help I should see you...Kitty, right?**

**Kitty: (grins) C'est moi. Nice to see you. Come on in, I'll write to Gwen and tell her you're here. Fly Buckbeak around front: he can stay in my shed that opens up into my backyard. **

**Sirius: 'Kay. Thanks. (steers Buckbeak toward Kitty's house's door)**

**Kitty: (closes the window) Well, that settles that! **

**Yugi and Noa: (staring at Kitty) **

**Kitty: What? It's not like he's some sort of criminal or something.  
**

**Noa: (sweatdrop)**

**Yugi: Er...R&R, all! **


	22. Chapter 21: Goodbye is Not Forever

**Kitty: (is collapsed on her bed) Last...chapter...ohmyfuckinggod.**

**Yugi: (comes into the room) Kitten? Sirius asked me to ask you if you have any more of those honey-roasted peanuts.**

**Kitty: (looks at Yugi confusedly) Didn't he just take some from that container I have in the cupboard that's twice your height?  
**

**Yugi: Uh...yeah...he finished it. **

**Kitty: (SWEATDROP) Okaaaaaaay...**

**Lina: (crashes in through the ceiling)**

**Kitty: LINA! WHAT THE HELL-?**

**Bakura: (flies through the hole in the ceiling by jetpack) Lina-chan, you okay? **

**Lina: (dazed) Uuuuurgh... (collapses)**

**Kitty: (glares at Bakura and taps her foot impatiently on the ground) Explanation, please.**

**Bakura: (sweatdrop) ****Um...do I have to explain?**

**Kitty: Give me three good reasons why I shouldn't require one.**

**Bakura: Um...the explanation contains 1, alcohol beverages, 2, a over-the-top food fight, and 3, some superhero mutants.**

**Kitty: ...good reasons. Now I don't want to know.**

**Lina: (shakes her head back and forth to try and clear it) R&R!**

**

* * *

**  
_**Chapter Twenty-One:**_

_**Goodbye Is Not Forever**_

As soon as Sirius and Buckbeak had gone, Hermione grabbed Diana and Harry by their sleeves and yanked them down the steps of the West Tower and down the Hogwarts halls at break-neck speed to get back to the Hospital Wing. Fortunately they arrived just in time to see Dumbledore closing the door and getting ready to magically lock it. They told him of their success, and Dumbledore checked that their past selves were gone before telling them to slip into bed and locking the door behind them.

Diana kept sneaking looks at Ryou's motionless figure as she ate the chocolate Madame Pomfrey had given her, hoping to see him wake up. It was the tenth time in about ten minutes that Diana glanced over at him that there was a pounding from the floor above that made the room shake and a distant roar of fury.

"What on _earth_ is that all about?" Madame Pomfrey muttered, looking up at the ceiling in alarm and annoyance, "_Really_, they'll wake everyone up…"

Diana exchanged a look with Harry, then with Hermione, and her friends both nodded. They too had an idea of what had happened.

Madame Pomfrey stared at the door in bewilderment: angry voices were now growing louder and louder as they traveled down staircases and hallways toward the Hospital Wing.

"He must have Disapparated, Severus," said Fudge's voice, "We should've left someone in the room with him-"

"HE DID _NOT_ DISAPPARATE!" roared Snape, "YOU CAN'T APPARATE _OR_ DISAPPARATE INSIDE THIS CASTLE! THIS HAS SOMETHING…TO DO…WITH…_POTTER_!"

"Severus, be _reasonable_…Harry has been locked up, as have his friends-"

_BANG_!

Even though Diana knew Snape was going to open the door less than calmly, she still couldn't stop herself from jumping when he burst the door open, beside himself with fury.

"OUT WITH IT, POTTER!" he bellowed, staring at Harry, wild-eyed, "_WHAT DID YOU DO_?"

"_Professor Snape_!" Madame Pomfrey shrieked, "_Control_ yourself!"

"See _here_, Severus," Fudge tried to calm the Potions Master down as he and Dumbledore came in after him, "The door's been _locked_, like Albus said-"

"HE AND HIS FRIENDS HELPED HIM ESCAPE, I KNOW IT!" Snape shouted, pointing at Diana, Harry and Hermione, "YOU DON'T KNOW THEM LIKE _I_ DO! THEY DID IT, I _KNOW_ THEY DID IT!"

Diana looked up at Snape rather calmly. "Did _what_? If you plan on _accusing_ us of something, Professor, you aught to at _least_ tell us your accusation."

Snape's face contorted, looking, if possible, even more livid. "YOU _KNOW_ WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT, RANDALL-"

"How _can_ I know if you haven't _explained_ yourself?" inquired Diana, trying to look annoyed when she was tempted to laugh, "For all we know, you're accusing us of helping Black escape, which, we all know, we couldn't have done, if all else for the reason that Black _couldn't_ have escaped the combined security of the dementors, the Minister _and_ Hogwarts."

She could see a vein popping in Snape's temple: Fudge looked both ashamed and sheepish: Harry and Hermione were trying desperately to hold back grins: Dumbledore had a twinkle in his eye.

"Severus, I locked this ward ten minutes ago," the Headmaster stated evenly, "By which time it would've been too late for _anyone_ to do _anything_ to help Sirius. Unless you're saying that three third-year students are able to help a heavily-locked criminal escape without a trace in less than ten minutes, I don't see any point in you troubling Diana, Harry and Hermione further."

Snape stood there for a moment, seething, before he whirled around and stormed out of the ward, his robes billowing behind him.

Fudge sighed. "Well…I better go notify the Ministry…I must say, the _Daily Prophet _will have a _field day_ with both the hippogriff _and_ Black escaping right under my nose…I'll take the dementors with me, Albus…Minerva had a point: they _are_ too dangerous to be around the students…"

Dumbledore looked rather pleased as he and Fudge left: Madame Pomfrey closed the door and headed back into her office, muttering to herself.

A moan came from Diana's right: Ryou sat up in bed, holding his head.

"_Ryou_!" Harry, Diana and Hermione all said in unison.

Ryou blinked at them. "Harry-kun? Dare-kun? Mione-kun? What…what _happened_? All Yami-san remembers are the dementors and-" 

"We'll explain everything later," interrupted Hermione.

"You're not the only one in the dark, methinks," commented Harry, "Seto, Marik and Mokuba don't even know about Sirius yet."

Right on time, the door opened and Marik and the Kaiba brothers entered.

"Guys!" Marik looked relieved.

"We'd heard something about Black and we got really worried," explained Mokuba, and he indeed looked worried, "Are you all okay?"

"Yugi and Ron aren't awake yet, but yeah," replied Diana.

"But _why_ are Yugi-kun and Ron-kun out?" asked Seto, "What happened?"

And so Diana, Harry, Hermione and a newly appeared Bakura launched into a long explanation about what had happened: going to see Hagrid, Remus being Diana's dad, Sirius being innocent, the Shrieking Shack, the Marauders and Spies, Snape and Gwen arriving, Scabbers being Pettigrew, the dementors, all the way up to the Time Turner and saving Sirius and Buckbeak from death. Indeed, after their long story was over, Seto, Marik and Bakura all looked a bit overwhelmed.

"_Whoa_," muttered Marik, "And I thought we couldn't get involved with any _more_ weird stuff, eh Kaiba-kun?"

"Hai," agreed Seto.

Mokuba, however, looked disappointed. "This _sucks_! The _first_ time I get a chance to witness one of your Hogwarts adventures, I _miss_ it!"

* * *

The next day, the Brits, Yugi and Ryou were allowed to leave the Hospital Wing and return to normal life. This day was a Hogsmeade day, but none of the friends felt like going, so they wandered around the grounds together, still talking about the extraordinary events of the night before. 

It was only when the group met up with Hagrid that they split up. They had expected him to be ecstatic as he informed them of Buckbeak's escape, but they certainly did not expect another piece of news to come from him.

"Lupin's _packing_?" repeated Harry in alarm, "But _why_?"

"_Leavin'_, ain't he?" replied Hagrid, looking surprised Harry had to ask, "Resigned firs' thing this morning…can't likely risk being loose at a full moon again and maybe _biting_ someone…"

Diana was even more troubled than Harry, so she took no time in heading up to Remus's office to confront him about this new discovery.

When she arrived in front of his office, she found the door open: the professor's office itself was empty except for Remus's battered suitcase now over-packed with stuff and a empty tank that had held the grindylow in one of their lessons sitting at the door. Remus was poring over something on his desk and looked up just as Diana had raised her hand to knock on the door.

"I saw you coming," he greeted with a smile, pointing toward the parchment he'd been reading: the Marauder's Map.

Diana couldn't smile back. "Hagrid said you quit…tell me it's not true."

Remus sighed. "Unfortunately, it is. I don't know if you heard that Severus…er…_accidentally_ let slip I was a werewolf at breakfast…"

"_That son of a bitch_!" Diana hissed before she could stop herself.

Remus's tawny eyes twinkled. "Gwen wasn't kidding when she told me you have a way with words…at any rate, I'm _sure_ you're aware of the bias against werewolves…no parent would want me teaching their children-"

"Mum would've," Diana replied bitterly, "Harry's parents would've."

Remus chuckled. "Even _now_ I wonder whether James or Carly had any sanity…but I'm sure they would've agreed with my decision. I could've killed any of you last night…I _can't_ risk your lives like that again."

"You're the best teacher we've ever had!" Diana argued, "You _can't_ go!"

Remus opened a drawer mutely to take out some papers: then he crossed the room to put them in his suitcase. "Your life means too much to me for that."

"I think I have _plenty_ of chances to die even if you _do_ leave," muttered Diana, "And what if the Ministry still doesn't let you see me?"

Remus looked at her seriously. "Gwen and I still have yet to speak with Fudge about what has happened…but I _promise_ you, no matter _what_ happens, I _will_ find a way to keep in touch with you."

Diana looked down at the floor. Remus put a hand on her shoulder.

"I never told you this, Diana," he whispered, "But as soon as I saw you, I was so proud of you I could barely restrain myself. You're such a beautiful young woman, and you deserve so _much_ from this world…yes, you're very _much_ like Carly, and in some ways you're even like _Sirius_, but in many ways, you're very different from both of them. You are wonderful on your own, and _that_, I think, is what Carly would've been the most glad to see."

Diana despite herself felt tears flood her eyes. She swallowed the feeling in the back of her throat tempting her to break down sobbing as she leaned her head on Remus's shoulder and put her arms around his waist in a hug.

The lycanthrope looked down at Diana in surprise, before he wrapped his arms around her and held her close. It was the first time Diana had really been hugged by a family member: even Gwen's supposed _"hugs"_ were more for murmuring quiet reproaches to her in public. The warm feeling erupting in Diana's stomach finally unblocked the barricade of pride that had held back her tears, and she started crying into Remus's shoulder.

"Diana…?" the professor asked in concern, feeling her tears soak his robes.

Diana choked, trying to speak audibly through her tears, but still couldn't pull away from her father's embrace. "I…I've just…never…felt so…_happy_…and _sad_…I dunno…"

Remus smiled sadly as he let her cry. It seemed to last for a while before Diana realized Remus had been humming a tune in her ear…a tune that seemed so familiar that it immediately started to calm her.

_"__Over the hills,  
Past the sea,  
There lies a secret home for you…  
Dream of love:  
Sing this song,  
And we'll always be with you…"_

She looked up at him as the flow of tears at last ended.

"That _song_…I've _heard_ that song somewhere…"

Remus blinked, before his face broke into a smile. "I'm surprised you recognize it…it was a lullaby I used to sing to you before you went to sleep…I remember…" his smile widened as he thought of a fond memory, "I remember your mother always used to get frustrated…you _never_ would fall asleep when _she_ sang to you…it always had to be _me_…she supposed werewolves could sing better than fox Animagi after having so much time exercising their voices by howling at the moon…"

Diana laughed: then she realized what he had said.

"She was a _fox_?" she asked, her mind going back to the blue-eyed fox from the dream she'd had so long ago, "Is _that_ why she was called Trickster?"

"Yes," said Remus, "And it fit her well. She was a tricky person…even her friends couldn't help but be nervous around her with all the spells she knew…if you made her mad, it was like writing your obituary…"

It was right then that a knock came from the door, and father and daughter turned to see Dumbledore in the doorway.

"Your carriage has arrived, Remus," Dumbledore told him, quite unsurprised at seeing Diana there.

"Thank you, Headmaster," answered Remus, picking up the tank in one arm and his suitcase in the other.

He then looked back at Diana. "I'll keep in touch."

Diana nodded and attempted a smile. "Look after yourself."

Remus gave her one last smile, before walking out the door and out of sight.

* * *

Diana waited with the Japanese boys outside King's Cross Station as Harry, Hermione and Ron left with their respective families. Harry had received a letter from Sirius on the Hogwarts Express by a small owl that Ron had adopted to replace Scabbers, and Harry reading the words of his godfather echoed in her head as she leaned up against the stone wall of the station.

* * *

_**Dear Harry, Dare et al.,**_

_**I hope this finds you on the train: I don't really want to scare any of the Muggles who might be at Kings Cross or make any of your other classmates too curious. **_

_**Buckbeak and I are in hiding. I can't tell you where in case this falls into the wrong hands. I believe the dementors are still searching for me, but they haven't a hope of finding me here. I'm thinking of letting a few Muggles glimpse me soon, far away from Hogwarts, so that the security around the castle will be lifted.**_

_**Harry: I wasn't able to tell you this in our brief meeting, but it was I who sent you the Firebolt. Crookshanks took the order to the Owl Office for me, and I used your name to take the money out of my vault. I hope it starts to make up for all the gifts I should have given you on each of your thirteen birthdays. I also have enclosed a note with this letter for Dumbledore giving you permission to go to Hogsmeade: I reckon you should at least go there once without having to resort to sneaking in under James's Invisibility Cloak.**_

_**Dare: Gwen told me that all this year you were searching for information about me in an attempt to kill me. I do hope that you have reconsidered, as Remus wasn't kidding when he told me you'd grow up to be as clever as Carly was with spells. Hopefully I'll get to see more of you when and if my innocence is proven, as well as Harry. Maybe you can make up a cool nickname for me too… nah, I'm only kidding.**_

_**Ron: It's my fault you no longer have a rat, so do take this owl with my apologies. He may look a bit stupid to me, but I think he's at least a little reliable, and he sure has energy to get him through any kind of journey he flies.**_

_**If you ever need me, send word with Harry's owl: she'll know where to find me. I'll write again soon.**_

**_Sirius_

* * *

**

It was then as Diana was daydreaming about Sirius's words that a voice interrupted her thoughts.

"You okay, Dare-kun?"

Diana blinked and looked over at Marik. "Oh…yeah, just thinking."

And as she looked at the Egyptian, Roth's words that previous summer suddenly flew to the front of her mind once more.

**"_Do not let yourself be consumed by the very thing that brought Artemis and almost Marik to their doom, no matter who you meet or what you hear…"_**

"Marik?"

"Hai?"

"When I visited your family's tomb last summer, Roth said…something about how…evil had once _consumed_ you…and that you still have problems fighting back against those feelings…what did he mean?"

Marik was quiet for a moment, obviously thinking hard: his eyes did not leave his friend's face.

"It's a long story…" he said slowly, "I…I don't know if you remember my boggart in Lupin-sensei's first class…"

"You mean that guy who looked like you?" asked Diana.

"Yeah," Marik sighed, "That…that was my Yami."

Diana stared. "_Yami_…? You never told me you have-"

"That's because I don't have him anymore," Marik cut her off quietly, "When I was eleven…I went through the Tomb Keeper's Initiation. My father carved the Pharaoh's Secret into my back…ever since then, I felt myself changing…darkness grew in my heart, until it created my Yami…Malik. One night, when Kara-chan had snuck out of her family's tomb to visit me after dark, my father discovered us. My sister had told Father about us…he was drunk and very angry. I've been told after my father started to punish Kara-chan…my Yami came out…and killed him."

Artemis's Heir put a hand to her mouth. "Oh, Marik…I'm so sorry…"

Marik smiled, glad for her empathy. "I didn't know at the time…when I came around, the Guardian of the Millennium Items, Shadi, had appeared to me, saying that my father had to die for the Pharaoh to return…and I thought that meant he had killed my father on the Pharaoh's orders…so I ran away from home with Odeon to get my revenge. Of course, I later found out the truth, and I was able to send my Yami to the Shadow Realm so that no one else would ever suffer again at his hands. What I saw when the dementors got close to me…was Malik trying to kill Kara-chan."

Diana at first didn't speak. Then she murmured something inaudible.

"What?" asked Marik, "What did you say, Dare-kun?"

"Revenge," she repeated, "_'Do not let yourself be consumed by the very thing that brought Artemis and almost Marik to their doom, no matter who you meet or what you hear…' _Roth was talking about revenge. Artemis went after Atem for what had happened to her parents, even though it wasn't his fault…and you went after Atem for what happened to your dad even though it wasn't his fault…I was almost consumed by revenge by going after Sirius for what happened to my mum, even though it wasn't his fault. I almost walked right onto the path Roth was warning me to stay away from."

Marik would probably have asked for the whole story, but he decided to give his friend this lone moment of realization as the Kaiba limousine drove up in front of the group and Melisanne opened the door to exchange a kiss and hug with Seto and Mokuba, before inviting the Japanese boys in.

"Sayonara, Dare-kun," Marik gave her a hug, "Glad I could help."

Diana smiled. "No prob. Make sure you and this lot write to me."

Marik grinned back. "That's a promise."

The next thing Diana knew, she was watching the limousine drive away with her friends waving goodbye to her through the back window. She felt a hand on her shoulder, and she turned to see Gwen, full healed and back to her normal, serious self.

"Are you alright?" she asked her niece.

Diana looked at her with a subdued look.

"For now."

* * *

**Kitty: (long, long, LONG sigh) Wow. My fav book is done. And now... GOBLET OF FIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIRRRRREEE! (grins)**

**Yugi: Otherwise known as your fanfiction called...?**

**Kitty: 'Maybe Angels.'**

**Lina: Ooh, cool title.**

**Kitty: It's a the name of a song by Sheryl Crow. (sings)_ I swear they're out there...I swear...Maybe Angels...Maybe Angels..._**

**Bakura: Hey, wait...isn't it almost time for the Bash-a-thon?**

**Kitty: (smirks) Yes, it is...and we'll have a special guest coming to visit us over here to co-host it with me.**

**Lina: Ooh, who?**

**(Doorbell rings)**

**Kitty: (jumps out of bed) OOH, IT MUST BE HER! (races downstairs like a racecar on a race course) CLAAAAAAAIRE-CHAAAAAAN!**

**Lina and Bakura: (sweatdrop) **

**Yugi: (smiles) Okay, all, don't forget your bashing ideas for our new bash-subjects: Malfoy the Ferret, Snape the Slimeball! and Pettigrew the Rat! R&R!**


	23. Harry Potter and the Crazy Bashathon

**Malfoy, Snape & Pettigrew Bash-a-thon**

Kitty: (waves) Heysies, everyone! It's time for the third annual Bash-a-thon! Hosting this celebration today are moi, the1koolkitty, and my loverly authoress friend, SGCred!

Claire: (waves) Hey, guys! So flattered to be here. (grins)

Yugi: We, of course, are _delighted_ to have Claire here with us-

Seto: _Duh_. She's the one who wrote the stories about our girlfriends and us.

Melisanne: But that's not the _only_ reason.

Seto: Isn't it?

Melisanne: Seto! (whacks Seto in the back of the head)

Seto: _OW_! _What_?

Claire: (snickers) She's generally quiet and sweet, though fair warning, that doesn't mean she's completely docile.

Seto: _Now_ you tell me.

Melisanne: (glares at Seto reproachfully) _Anyway_… (smiles at the audience) The three bashing guests for this revelry are Malfoy the Ferret, Snape the Slimeball and Pettigrew the Rat…

Claire: …who are hanging out with us, anxiously awaiting your most wonderful forms of bashing. (gestures to Malfoy, Snape and Pettigrew, all being hung from the ceiling)

Pettigrew: (tied up by his rat tail and crying) _WAH_! GET ME DOWN FROM HERE!

Malfoy: (tied up by his leg and crossing his arms) Oh, just shut the fuck up.

Snape: (tied up by his hair and fuming) I _swear_, when I get my wand back…

Kitty: You'll _what_? Sectumsempra me? My dear sir, no kind of Dark Arts spell will _ever_ get through the protection over me.

Snape: And what protection is _that_?

Kitty: The power of Yugi's love. (glomps Yugi and grins)

Snape: (sweatdrop) Gag me.

Atem: (gags him) Don't mind if I do: your voice is getting _annoying_.

Snape: (glares at Atem and struggles against his bonds) _MURPH_!

Claire: Let's start the bashing, shall we? (picks up a box) We'll draw from this box to see who will go first.

Mokuba: _Ooh_! _Ooh_! Can I pick the name, Claire? _Pleeeeeeeeeeeease_?

Claire: Of course you can. (offers Mokuba the box)

Mokuba: (reaches his hand in and picks out a name) ANAYAS-CREATER!

Kitty: Alright then…Seth, will you release the prisoners?

Seth: (smirks and pulls a lever)

Snape, Malfoy and Pettigrew: (fall from the ceiling) _AHHH_- (fall face-first into the ground) _Ow_.

Claire: A friend of Hagrid's is coming over soon, so these three should look their best. (takes out her wand) _RIDDIKULUS_!

Snape, Malfoy and Pettigrew: (are suddenly dressed in Neville's grandmother's clothes)

Malfoy: WHAT THE FUCK? I AM _NOT_ A CROSSDRESSER!

Kitty and Claire: (whack Malfoy hard with drumsticks)

Malfoy: _OOOWW_! What was that for!

Claire: _NO ONE_ disses crossdressers around us-

Kitty: -'cause you mock the elegance and beauty of Angel from RENT, and for _THAT_, you will pay!

Malfoy: (fumes) YOU'LL HEAR FROM MY FATHER FOR THIS-

Kitty: And _what_, pretell, happened to your father the _last_ time he was involved in one of my Bash-a-thons?

Malfoy: (goes white) _Er_…

((Flash-back))

**_Lockhart: (immediately jumps to is feet, 4-D once more) BARK! BARK, BARK!_**

**_Lucius: What the-?_**

**_Malfoy: Dad, I suggest you run._**

**_Lucius: Why would I?_**

**_Malfoy: Because Lockhart thinks he's a dog and will try to eat you now that you smell like gravy._**

**_Lucius: That's ridiculous, no one would- (Lockhart bites him in the butt) AH! MY ASS!_**

**_Malfoy: I TOLD YOU SO! (runs away, Lucius and Lockhart right behind him)_**

((Real))

Malfoy: (sweatdrop) Oh, _damn_ it all.

Snape: (still gagged) _MURPH_!

Claire: What? You say that you'd like to meet that friend of Hagrid's? Very well! (calls off-stage) OH, ARAGOG!

Malfoy: _Aragog_? Who's Aragog?

Pettigrew: I don't like the sound of this…

Snape: (nods in agreement) Murph.

Aragog: (somehow is able to appear in Kitty's room) _FOOD_!

Snape, Malfoy and Pettigrew: _AHHHHHHHHHHH_! (run away, Aragog after them)

Kitty: (looking away from the door and trembling) Is he gone?

Yugi: It's okay now, Kitten.

Kitty: (sighs in relief and opens her eyes) That's good…Aragog isn't _that_ bad of a spider…but he's _still_ a spider. (shivers)

Seth: Ron-kun would agree with you.

Yugi: (cuddles his girlfriend to calm her down) It's okay Neko-chan, hush now.

Kitty: (snuggles and purrs)

Claire: Aww, kawaii! (grins)

Seto: Oh, give me a _break_. That's just sweet enough to make you _sick_.

Melisanne: (blinks) Oh, so when _we_ cuddle up you want to be sick as well? (cute pout)

Seth and Mokuba: (sniggering)

Seto: (flusters) _No_! Of _course_ not! (holds her because he hates the pout) That's different all together…_and will you two stop that_!

Seth and Mokuba: (stop sniggering)

Seto: What is your _problem_?

Seth: Hikari, you really _are_ a hypocrite. You complain about others showing public affection when you tend to get a little _carried away_ yourself. (chuckles)

Seto: I DO _NOT_! (cheeks redden)

Seth: I'm inside your head while it's _happening_: I should know, though I won't describe anything in case there are _young_ readers looking at this…

Mokuba: And I sneak downstairs and spy on you two from the banister. (giggles)

Melisanne: (blushes, secretly glad her siblings are not there)

Seto: _Argh_! This is all your fault- (turns to blame Yugi and Kitty but goes silent)

Yugi and Kitty: (lying sprawled out on the floor in a _very intimate _make-out position)

Claire: Oh boy… (censors detail from readers)

Seto: Oh, for the love of…(turns to Atem) Can't you do anything to _stop_ this!

Atem: You have it _easy_, try living in the same _house_ as them…I can't go _anywhere_ without walking in on them doing certain unmentionable things.

Seth: Can't you just tell them to _stop_? He _is_ your Hikari, cousin…

Atem: …And because he is my Hikari I know _better_ than to disturb him. (shudders) You _don't_ want to see Yugi being aggressive.

Claire: (sighs) Well, we kinda need them for the rest of the Bash-a-thon, so we'll have to break them up.

Melisanne: But how?

Claire: Like this. (inserts disc into DVD player) I _hate_ breaking up the cuteness, but I have no choice. (sighs, pressed play and Phantom of the Opera starts, Gerard Butler on screen singing)

Kitty: (hears Gerard Butler singing) _ERIK_! (jumps out of Yugi's arms to watch DVD)

Yugi: (blinks) Kitten? (sad pout)

Claire: Sorry Yugi, but the Bash-a-thon must continue, so you have to wait…

Yugi: Not fair!

Claire: Wait till afterwards…

Yugi: She might be too _busy_ later… (sulks)

Claire: (whispers) Not if you wear those Mark glasses. (winks)

Yugi: (grins) _Yippee_! (fantasizes about candles, strawberries and whipped cream for later on)

Atem: (groans) I'm not going to get a wink of sleep tonight…

Snape, Malfoy and Pettigrew: (run back into Kitty's room and try to dive under Kitty's bed to hide from Aragog)

Kitty: (manages to turn her attention back to the bashing instead of Gerard Butlers wonderful singing, with a LOT of difficulty) Oh no you don't! Guys, if you wouldn't mind.

Seto, Atem and Yugi: (nod and grab them before they can escape under Kitty's bed)

Pettigrew: _Please_! I'll do _anything_! Just don't let that thing eat me!

Seto, Atem and Yugi: (toss the three into the air so that they hang on Kitty's chandelier)

Seth: (sighs) I better go and renegotiate the fresh meat we promised…we can't really _kill_ them, after all, we still need them for the rest of the Bash-a-thon and the fics… (leaves)

Seto: (reaches his hand into the box of names and picks one out) Looks like Kyte is next…what's that girl got up her sleeve this time?

Claire: (smirks) She planned out something special for each of them.

(Snape, Malfoy and Pettigrew look scared)

Malfoy: Oh shit. That's that crazy girl who made Lockhart bite my dad in the ass, isn't it?

Kitty: (smirks) You're right, Mr. Malformed Dragon, it is.

Malfoy: We're screwed.

Kitty: I think the only person who might want to screw any of you would be my loverly sister Emessa-chan…but whatever. Let's get onto this bashing. (snaps her fingers and a large, deep pool appears in her room)

Claire: Snivallus…it's time for you to wash your hair. (snaps her fingers and Snape is released from the chandelier and falls into the pool)

Snape: (splutters and mutters through his gag) Murph, murph, murph, murph-murph!

(A shark fin appears above the water and chases Snape around the pool)

Snape: _MURRRRRRRRRRRRPPPPHHHH_!

Pettigrew: (trembling all over)

Kitty: Oh, don't worry, Wormtail…you're not going to be chased by sharks.

Pettigrew: (whew)

Kitty: But hey…my name is _Kitty_…and to a rat _no_ kitty is trustworthy. (picks up a little plastic ball usually used as a hamster toy) Now get in.

Pettigrew: (shakes his head fervently)

Claire: Would you rather go to my house in Britain with the underground torture chamber?

Pettigrew: (squeaks) Okay, okay! (turns into a rat and jumps into the ball)

Kitty: (places the plastic ball in a mini-labyrinth sent to her by Kyte) In the center of his thing is a piece of cheese, if you want it.

Rat Pettigrew: (forgets everything about the Bash-a-thon and Kitty at the mention of cheese) _CHEEEEEEEEEEEEESE_! (takes off in circles round and round the labyrinth)

Yugi: Why'd you tell him there was cheese at the end, Kitten?

Kitty: He wouldn't have cooperated with the bashing otherwise.

Yugi: True. (pecks her on the cheek, still fantasizing about later on)

Rat Pettigrew: (finally collapses of exhaustion) The _dizziness_…it _BURNS_!

Kitty: I'm sure it does… (snatches the cheese from the labyrinth and eats it)

Atem: Last but not least…is Malfoy. (smirks)

Malfoy: Oh _shit_.

Mad Eye Moody: (suddenly appears and transforms Malfoy into a ferret)

Ferret Malfoy: (freaking out) _EEEEEK_! **((Translation: OH _SHIT_!))**

Claire: (comes into the room carrying Crookshanks) Okay, Crookshanks…here's your new toy! (puts Crookshanks down in front of Ferret Malfoy)

Crookshanks: (licks his chops) Mrrrrrrrrrow!

Ferret Malfoy: _EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEK_! **((Translation: _EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEK_!))** (runs away, Crookshanks after him)

(Kitty, Claire et al. watch the two animals run around the room in circles as if they're watching a vaguely interesting movie)

Seto: (eating popcorn) Very amusing.

Claire: Five stars.(shares out shortbread she brought from the UK) Ok, who is next to bash, I wonder? (reaches toward the box of names and pulls the next one out) Ah…Blackcat1227 has an even _more_ entertaining idea…but will Malfoy go along with it, I wonder?

Ferret Malfoy: EEK-EEK, EEK EEEEEEEEEEEK! **((Translation: I'LL DO ANYTHING, JUST GET THIS CAT AWAY FROM ME!))**

Claire: Alright, then…chase Rat Pettigrew for Blackcat1227 and we'll turn you back before Crookshanks eats you. (waves her wand and Pettigrew appears out of the labyrinth in front of Malfoy)

Ferret Malfoy: EEK EEEEEEEEK! **((You better scram, rat, I'm not in a good mood!))** (chases Rat Pettigrew around the room, Crookshanks still after him)

Rat Pettigrew: _SQUEEEEEEEEEEEEK_!** ((HEEEEEEEEELP!))**

(…A half hour goes by…)

Kitty: I think that's enough exercise for Pettigrew: if he's too fast, he might escape even more easily from Sirius than he did before. (waves her wand and Pettigrew is turned back into a human and reattached to the ceiling)

(Crookshanks finally pounces on Ferret Malfoy)

Ferret Malfoy: _EEK_! EEK-EEK EEEEEEK! **((No! I'm too handsome to die!))**

Kitty: Oh shut up. A promise is a promise, as much as I wish it didn't have to be. (changes Malfoy back into a human)

Crookshanks: (is now on Malfoy's back) RRRRRRROW! (jumps off and scampers away)

Malfoy: Whew. I think it's over…

(Kitty attaches him and the gagged Snape back up to the ceiling)

Malfoy: Spoke too soon.

Snape: Murph.

Pettigrew: (trembling all over) I think I've been scarred for _life_…

Claire: Glad we helped bring that about! (grins evilly)

Melisanne: (picks a name from the box) Rainbow Guardian Angel!

Yugi and Atem: (glomp Rainbow and Mizumi in unison) _YAY_!

Malfoy, Snape and Pettigrew: _Shit_.

Kitty: (snaps her fingers and the three torture victims fall from the ceiling back onto the floor) Et maintenant…c'est time, once again, to play an old Kitty-Rainbow favorite…_WHACK A FERRET_!

Malfoy: _No_! Not that stupid game a-

(Kitty and Rainbow start whacking him at once)

Malfoy: …gain… (collapses)

Snape: (shakes his head) Murph, murph.

Claire: (raises an eyebrow at Snape) Oh? You don't think that's bad? How about you meet Rainbow's pet Slifer, then?

Slifer the Snake: (enters)** ((Hisssssss. Bastard, prepare to meet your doom.))**

Snape: (looks down at the small snake derisively) Murph.

Claire: (points her wand at Slifer) _ENGORGIO_!

Slifer: (grows to the size of a skyscraper)

Snape: MURPH! (is chased by the giant snake)

Pettigrew: (looks around the room, paranoid as to what his torture will be)

Rainbow: (sneaks up behind him wearing a scary cat mask) _BOO_!

Pettigrew: _AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH_-

(…Fifteen minutes later…)

Pettigrew: -_HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH_! (collapses in a dead faint)

Emessa: (enters) _Torelphie_! What the _hell_ is going on in here?

Kitty (a.k.a. Torelphie): (eyes widen in fear) _Emessa_? _Sister dear_? W-what are you _doing_ here? I thought you were in Vegas!

Emessa: (glares) What are _you_ doing, tormenting my bishies?

Everyone Else: (ducks behind desk to hide from Emessa)

Yugi: (gulps) This isn't good.

Seto: We're dead.

Claire: Well, next Bash-a-thon you might be in the UK with me, so _hopefully_ we'll be safer there.

Kitty: (huge sweatdrop) Oh Emessa-chan…you _know_ I meant no harm…I _like_ Draco, I really do!

Slifer: (still chasing after Snape) HISSSSSSSS- **((I'll get you, you-!))**

Emessa: (glares a death glare at the huge snake) I'd rethink going after a Wicked Witch's bishie if I were you.

Slifer: _HISSSSSS_! **((AHHHHH!))** (slithers away)

Malfoy, Snape and Pettigrew: (cowering behind Emessa)

Kitty: C'mon, Emessa, we were doing it mostly for the _readers_-

Emessa: Well, let me borrow Sirius for a few days and I _might_ forgive you, sister dear.

Sirius: (shivers at the thought of being around one of the few people who hates his guts as much as Snape) Kitty, you won't-

Kitty: We'll negotiate this in a sec, ma souer…let me just sign off… (looks at the audience) Okay, all…signing off, this is the1koolkitty, who is in serious trouble-

Claire: -and SGCred, who is going to stay away from Emessa's wrath (sweatdrop)-

Kitty: -saying _'Until next fic, Sayonara!'_


End file.
